Save Us From Sleep, And What We Are
by tenspeed457
Summary: Yami has been acting distant and strange lately, but Seto doesn't really pay much attention to it... until he starts having dreams about ancient Egypt, and the relationship between a certain pharaoh and priest. yaoi... lemons .
1. Chapter 1: The Light & the Glass

(I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh)

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~Chapter One- The Light and the Glass~

* * *

"Big brother, come on!" I sighed at the sound of Mokuba's shrill begging.

"Mokuba, I'm working." He turned to me. _No, Mokuba. Don't give me that look..._

"B-but you promised you'd hang out with me..." I could already feel my resolve weakening. He was good at getting what he wanted.

"That was before I knew what we would actually be _doing._" There was no way I wanted to spend the afternoon to their stupid, utterly pointless conversations.

"But you promised, Seto. Y-you promised!" How could I refuse those sad eyes? I couldn't, and he knew it. I never had been able to.

"Fine. But I'm _not _going to have fun." I knew I sounded childish, but I didn't care. There was no point in lying, pretending that I wouldn't be absolutely miserable.

"Yay! Thank you thank you thank you!!!" Well, maybe Mokuba would make things less horrible. If he was there, I might have a little fun, or at least not be totally bored.

Okay, so I lied. Even Mokuba's presence couldn't ease the pain of being around those morons, and especially not on their home turf. This was why I refused to take another step when I realized where we were.

"Absolutely not. No. I am not going in that damn game shop."

"But Seeetooo, we're getting Yugi and Yami!"

"Yeah. Tell them to come out here, because I'm standing right here."

"So you're gonna stand there for an hour?" What.

"What do you mean an _hour_?"

"That's when they get off of work." So the midget had a job? He probably sucked at it. Not that I was bitter or anything like that.

"Why on earth are we here an hour early?" I was doing a pretty good job of sounding calm. I thought so, anyway, but Mokuba was giving me that _look_ again.

"B-Because, I wanted to get some stuff..."

"Why not just order what you want online?" He sighed and shook his head.

"Because, Seto," he said with patience, as if explaining something very simple to someone incredibly stupid- he probably got a lot of practice doing that, hanging out with this group. "That isn't _fun_." Oh, why didn't I think of that?

"Yeah. Because being in this dump is _so_ much more fun." He glared at me. I should have shut up right then, but... "not to mention the fact that you have to put up with them and their stupid-"

"HEY!!!" I was taken aback by Mokuba's sudden outburst. "You promised to be nice to them." Why the hell had I promised that?

"Perhaps, and I _will_ be nice _to_ them. That entails nothing, however, stating that I have to speak nicely _about _them."

"Yeah, well you're coming in with me, whether you want to or not." Like hell I would... oh shit. There's the midget now.

"Mokuba!" His eyes widened even more (how is that possible?) when he saw me. "Kaiba! Come on in, you guys!"

"Actually, I would rather stay here." Mokuba kicked me sharply in the shin. "Ouch! What was that for?!"

"I told you to be nice! Come inside and stop being a jerk!" Aright, that did it. I wouldn't embarrass him in front of his friends, but when we got home, he would be in serious trouble. And I mean _**serious**_** trouble. **

Luckily for me, that annoying old man wasn't anywhere to be seen. The tall Yugi- no, Yami- just nodded at me, as he was speaking with a customer. I will admit that he is one of the more intelligent members of their group. Still irritating as hell, but smarter than the rest of them and less psycho than that Bakura freak. And less gay than the little Bakura (Ryou, I think? Who cares.), although that's not saying much.

"So... how are you two?" Yugi looked a little nervous that I was there. Good.

"Good! I convinced Seto to come!"

"Obviously..." I muttered. Well, I was mad about the kicking. It _hurt_.

"Well, I'm glad you decided to come with us!"

"I'm not." Mokuba kicked me _again_.

"Big brother, be nice!" I glared at him with all my might, but it was totally ineffective. Damn kid...

"Hello." Yami had finished with the customer he had been helping, coming over to join us. I once again nodded curtly to him, while Mokuba practically attacked the guy.

"Yami! What's up?!" I was about to scold Mokuba when Yami laughed.

"Hey, Mokuba. We got that new game you wanted! I saved a copy for you."

"You did? Thank you soooo much!" Yami laughed at my brother's energy. I couldn't help smiling also; Mokuba acts like such a child sometimes. At least one of us had been allowed a childhood... no, couldn't think like that. Not here, in front of people. I was already angry enough.

"Hey, it's no problem. I'll be right back with it." He ducked into the backroom, returning a few moments later with a small box. It looked like a DS game, or something utterly pointless that Mokuba, for whatever reason, loves.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!" He jumped on Yami, hugging him tightly. Hey... he's _my_ brother, dammit!

"Mokuba, I could have gotten that for you weeks ago," I told him, trying to get his attention.

"But Kaiba, that's illegal!" Yugi piped up. Of course he would, the little twerp. "It just came out yesterday!" I glared at the runt.

"No shit. I _said_ I could have gotten it weeks ago." Wisely, the brat shut up. Mokuba looked at me strangely, and then hugged me. That was better.

"It's okay, Seto. Don't be jealous." What? How dare he-?

"What the hell are you even talking about?" He looked at me the way he does when he thinks I'm being stupid. I say _thinks_ I'm being stupid, because I am _never_ stupid.

"Never mind, Seto. Never mind." Okay, what the hell was that supposed to mean?! Yami shifted a little uncomfortably, putting his ridiculous hair back in a ponytail. It looked a little less absurd like that; maybe his shorter version should try the same.

"Hey, Mokuba. Why don't you try out your game?"

"Alright! Here, I'll pay for it now." He pulled out his Pokemon wallet (yeah, he's sixteen. Don't ask.) and paid for it, then almost ripped the box open.

"Mokuba, be patient!" I told him, probably a little more sharply than was strictly necessary, but he stuck his tongue out at me without even looking up from the package.

"This is so cool," he said when he had it on. He and Yugi sat down- yes, right there in the middle of the floor- to play, Yugi watching over his shoulder.

"Mokuba, don't get your clothes dirty," I tried to tell him.

"Whatever you say, Seto." He wasn't paying any attention to what I had just said. I sighed. He was hopeless. I walked over to one of the large glass display cases where they had some of the more expensive games. They used to just be a card and board game shop, but had expanded into a larger store that included video games as well. With my business advice, of course. Oh, how that killed the old man, to take advice from _me_ (not literally, of course- unfortunately). I wasn't really interested in these games, but I was bored. Suddenly, Yami was next to me. How does he do that? I swear to god, he's like a ghost... oh. Wait. According to these freaks, he sort of is. Bullshit.

"Kaiba," He greeted me politely. That was one of the things that pissed me off about him; he was always so damn polite.

"Hello. Can I help you?" He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye.

"Kaiba, are you alright?" Well, that wasn't what I was expecting...

"What on earth do you mean by that?" Maybe I could get rid of him.

"You're acting strangely."

"I'm strange. What can I say?" He shook his head.

"No. You're acting different than you usually do." How the hell would he know what I was like normally? "You've been snapping at Mokuba more than usual, and you seem... preoccupied." Shit, the pharaoh was perceptive...

"If I'm preoccupied, it's only because I have a business to run. Which, I might add, I should be doing right now instead of being here, wasting my time." There. Maybe he would leave me alone.

"I don't believe that. You've always had a business to run. The last few times I've seen you, though, you seem... troubled about something." Or, maybe he wouldn't leave me alone.

"Thank you, but my personal thoughts are no business of yours." He didn't look upset at my rudeness. That was unfortunate. I could always try harder... "So I would appreciate if you would fuck off about it." He smiled. What? Why the fuck would he smile. That was ridiculous. "What's so damn funny?"

"You," he said, shaking his head. I was getting really pissed by this point. I didn't know what he meant by that, but I sure as hell wasn't going to tell him anything, one way or another. "You never change, do you, Seto?" Okay, now he was using my first name? That was not okay with me. I gave him my most dangerous "Kaiba" glare.

"Yami, if you know what is good for you, shut the hell up." He looked... sad. Whatever. So I'd hurt his feelings. Good.

"Do you remember _anything_, Seth?"

"Of course I remember things, you moron, and what the hell did you just call me?" He shook his head.

"Not what I meant. I mean... do you remember anything about Egypt?"

"I've never been to Egypt. That's you, remember?" I said, as snobbishly as I could. He sighed.

"Well, _**I**_ remember..." He said nothing else. Finally, he'd shut up. But Seth... why did that name sound so familiar? Maybe I knew someone named Seth. It's a common enough name, after all. Or maybe it was just that it was close to my own name... Yeah, that was probably it.

I paced around that dump for close to forty-five minutes, using the idle time to make some phone calls. God, people were stupid.

"Listen, I don't _care_! Just find it and get it sent!" I snapped my phone shut, spinning to see if those morons were done with work. I was in a very _bad _mood now. More than before, that is... "Hey! When are we leaving?" Mokuba looked at me, concerned.

"Seto, what's the matter?"

"Nothing, Mokuba. But I am bored of standing here, doing absolutely nothing."

"Nothing but yelling at people..." I spun around to find the weird white-haired freaks. The creepier one, Bakura, was the one who had spoken, and he stood there with a very disconcerting smirk on his face. "Not like that's anything new for the priest, though. Right, pharaoh?" Goddammit, not that shit again.

"Shut the fuck up. I'm not a priest, and I never was. Okay?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

"What do you say, _pharaoh?_" He hissed. I'd forgotten; those two hate each other even more than I hate them all combined. I don't really know all the details of it, but it has something to do with the fact that they think they knew each other in a past life... whatever. Yami's expression was strange... "Eh?"

"Bakura, please. Not now." I could tell that there was no way Bakura would have backed off, if his miniature hadn't stepped in.

"Come on, Bakura. Let's go see what Yugi's doing." Bakura shot Yami a nasty look before turning to follow his... what did they always call their less evil versions? Hikari? Yeah, his hikari. I couldn't help but notice the way the pharaoh's face paled a few shades. I didn't really blame him; the guy was scary. Whatever. Now that they were here, we could go. Where we were going, I don't know, but it would have to be better than being stuck here.

Not soon enough, Malik and Marik (stupid names) joined us along with that stupid bitch Anzu, pointy-haired-Honda, and the stupid mutt, so we got out of there, and walked to.... the aquarium. Well, that wasn't too bad, I guess. It could have been somewhere stupid. I don't know where they spend their time, and I don't plan on spending enough time with them to find out. Mokuba walked between Yugi and me, and the rest of them walked in a big crowd. Yami sort of lagged behind the rest of us, walking almost by himself. Probably trying to get away from Anzu throwing herself at him. I actually kind of liked the aquarium. I hadn't been in... I can't even remember how long. I don't think Mokuba had ever gone before this.

It was dark in the vast majority of the building, the only light coming from the fish tanks and a few dim lights along the walkways, so that people didn't fall and die- that would be a liability. I tried to put as much distance between myself and the group as I possibly could, lagging a few rooms behind them.

"Hey, Kaiba..." Dammit, who was it now?

"Oh. Hello." Damn pharaoh again. Well, I suppose I could try to be cordial... "Enjoying yourself?"

"No." Well, that was blunt.

"Why not? Your friends are all here."

"Yugi's friends."

"They're your friends, too." He shook his head, smiling sadly as we watched a cowfish smashing into the glass, over and over again.

"They sort of are... but basically, they're friends with me because Yugi wants them to be." That was depressing...

"Well, you've always got Anzu," I joked. He rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, thanks." He glanced at me, and his expression startled me. He looked... tired. Exhausted, actually. It was a look that I had grown used to; staying up for days on end for company business takes its toll on a person. "I know they don't like me that much... Well, obviously Bakura hates my guts, and he's rubbed off on Ryou a little bit. I freak Malik out, which makes no sense, because Marik is a total psychopath." He shrugged. "Sorry. Just ignore me; I'm rambling."

"Yeah, you are." We laughed. This was weird. Just weird. "It's okay, though." He smiled at me gratefully. What was I thinking? I don't know. Every now and then, I get the urge to be a decent human being. Sometimes. It's very rare. "Are you alright?" The words felt and sounded strange in my voice. I don't say such things to anyone except Mokuba. He glanced at me sadly.

"Not really, but it doesn't matter. I'll survive." We stood there for a moment, awkwardly.

"We should probably catch up to them."

"Yeah, we probably should." Neither of us made any move to do so, though. "I didn't really want to come," I told him. "I'm pretty much only here because Mokuba guilted me into it." He smiled ruefully.

"I'd kinda figured as much. I like the aquarium... I'd never seen anything like it before. The only fish I ever saw were river fish. Catfish, and that kind of thing. As much as I love the Nile, the fish species weren't exactly exciting." He looked sad again.

"Do you miss Egypt?" He nodded.

"Yeah... I miss the sun, and the sand, and the way the breeze felt at sunset coming off of the river. Some rivers are dangerous and unpredictable, but the Nile... it's constant. It floods its banks, the same time every year, and you can rely on it. I miss the people; I miss Mahad, and Mana, and..." he trailed off.

"And?"

"Never mind." He shook his head, and I didn't press the issue. If he didn't want to talk, I wasn't going to force him. I didn't really care that much, anyway, but talking to him beat talking to the rest of the moronic group. Besides, at least ancient Egypt was somewhat interesting, as opposed to talking about friendship and all that nonsense.

"Yo, Kaiba! Yami! What're you guys doin' back here?" Ugh. It was the stupid, blond mutt.

"What do you want?" I snapped, and he glared at me.

"We're just looking, Jounouchi," Yami told him softly.

"Well hurry up! We're gonna watch the dolphin show thing! They got 'em trained, and everything!"

"You guys go ahead. Thanks for telling us." Yami's patience astounded me. I wanted nothing more than to smack the mutt. Said mutt shrugged.

"Okay, whatever." I rolled my eyes as he ran off.

"He's not _that_ bad," Yami reprimanded me.

"Not that bad? He's a moron."

"Well, yes, but he means well."

"Whatever. I have no time for morons." Yami laughed.

"Yeah, you never did." Now he was back on that again...

"What the hell are you talking about?" I wanted to know why he and Bakura kept hinting at things with me, and exactly what they meant.

"What am I talking about? About things that... you apparently don't remember."

"Don't mess with me, pharaoh. Just tell me."

"I'm talking about you, in Egypt with me."

"I told you before, I was never in Egypt," I insisted. This was really getting old.

"I know what you told me. I also know that you're wrong." What? How dare he... "Don't get upset," he implored, putting his hands up in front of him. "Just think about it for a few days. Please?" I thought about it for a moment.

"Go on..."

"Just think about it for a few days. If you don't remember anything, I'll leave you alone about it. I just... I can't just leave it like this. I have to know if there's any way that you'll remember what I remember."

"What do you remember?" Maybe if he gave me a little to go on... wait, what?! It wasn't like I actually _believed_ this shit!

"No," he shook his head. "I don't want to influence what you may or may not remember. I don't want to plant false memories. And if you don't remember... But please, just... keep an open mind towards it."

"Fine," I sighed. "Whatever. But don't get your hopes up."

"Don't worry," he said softly. "I never do..." what the hell was that supposed to mean? And what the hell was I supposed to say to that?

"Okay. Let's catch up to the others." He said nothing in response.

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. We looked at fish. I mean, there really isn't much else to say about it. I couldn't help but notice that Yami looked a little more cheerful... or maybe I was imagining things. Either way, I was relieved to get home, where I could finally finish up my business for the day.

Later that night, I did what Yami had asked me to do, and just thought about Egypt in general. Nothing. Sure, there was that name, Seth, that he had called me earlier, but like I said, it's a common name, and it sounds remarkably similar to Seto. When I fell asleep, though, was a different story...

_I could hear him calling me as I walked through the halls. I finally reached his quarters, and he smiled when he saw me._

"_Seth!" He called, sounding pleased. "Come in!" I obeyed, trying not to look too pleased. Mahad and another one of his advisers were still standing there. "How is the day going?"_

"_Well. Thank you, pharaoh. And you?"_

"_Very well." He turned to look at Mahad. "Thank you for your assistance." They both knew that they were dismissed, although only Mahad knew the real reason for their dismissal. He gave me a warning look as he departed, although it was not necessary. When they were out of the room, Atem turned to me. "Finally, they are gone," He moaned, rubbing his eyes. "I thought I would never be rid of them!" I laughed. _

"_What do you want to do?" I asked him, knowing he would need to unwind._

"_Play with me?" He asked, his eyes lighting up. He took my hand and pulled me over to the Senet board. I smiled at the way he could act so childish sometimes, but that was part of what attracted me to him so much._

"_Of course..."_

I sat up quickly when the alarm went off. What was that? It had been... Yami? And me? In Egypt? I tried telling myself that it was just because of what Yami had said earlier. Even before I got out of bed, I reached over and pulled my laptop into my bed. I searched for senet, and found... an article on senet.

"Senet was a popular board game in ancient Egypt and may possibly be one of the ancestors of Backgammon. People of all levels of ancient Egyptian society played it and some believe it had religious popularity of this game is evident from the number of sets that have been found in Egyptian tombs, from those of commoners to those of the Pharaohs. So far, almost fifty sets have been discovered, many of them in perfect condition with the pieces and "dice" (either knucklebones or sticks) still intact."

Before my dream, I'd never even heard the word. After all, I had no need to pay attention to Egypt. So if it _were_ just a dream, I wouldn't have known the name of the game. And if it wasn't just a dream... shit.

* * *

_Memories roll in; of the things you once did  
and who you had shared them with is somebody thinking of you._

* * *

A/N: hey, everyone. thanks for reading this; I hope you like it so far. "Save us from sleep and what we are" is a line from the song "A Favor House Atlantic," by Coheed and Cambria (yeah, I'm a little obsessed...), but I thought it worked well for this. those last two lines are lyrics from the song "The Light and the Glass."

So I was trying to finish my TF2 fic, and I just really wanted to finish it. I sat down, all ready to write TF2 stuff, and... nothing. and then I got really excited for whatever reason, and started writing this (and then I made myself finish the other one).

~I would love it if you would review, and just tell me what you think, what needs improving, etc.

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

Thank yoooouuuuu!

~alex~


	2. Chapter 2: The End Complete

(I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or Coheed and Cambria)

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~Chapter Two: The End Complete~

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_Dig deeper, remember  
All you've been and all you've left behind.  
Wave goodbye, my dear.

* * *

_

I wasn't sure how to act around Yami the next day. I wasn't sure that I wanted to tell him... what would that mean? He had mentioned something about me remembering Egypt... if that implied that he thought I was one of those freaky spirit things, then no. I definitely didn't want to tell him. If I did, then I would never convince Bakura that I wasn't a priest, and then god knows what he'd do. After all, he's always talking about how attractive the priest was, and hinting at things he'd like to do to the priest. This always pissed Yami off, and if my dream was at all accurate, he and this Seth guy had been pretty close friends. During school, Yami and I pretty much ignored him. We never really talk to each other during the day. During lunch, though, he managed to pull me aside.

"So, Seto. Did... did you remember something?" I pursed my lips. I hadn't yet decided what to tell him.

"Not yet," I shook my head. "Sorry." He looked rather sad. And again I was curious, but not curious enough to ask what was wrong. "Look, I thought about it, okay? I told you, I'd see what I could do. Don't count on it, though. I still think this is ridiculous." He nodded.

"I understand. I apologize." I shrugged.

"Yami! Uh, Kaiba!" Shit, the midget had found us.

"Hey, Yugi. What's up?"

"Yami, come on! We're gonna eat. Kaiba, you come with us too." What? No way.

"No thank you, I have work to do," I lied, rifling through one of my notebooks to look busy.

"You can work there! Just come sit with us!" God, that kid was annoying. I still found it hard to believe that we were the same age. He's Mokuba's friend, though, so I knew I had to be... somewhat nice. And in this situation, there was no way I could refuse without being extremely rude.

"Very well," I sighed. Yami shot me a sympathetic look as we followed the runt. What the hell was he sorry for? Stupid.

"Hey, guys! Look who I found!" Cool, Yugi. Just announce it to everyone, why don't you. Anzu at least tried to hide her displeasure, while the weird Ishtars just looked at me. The puny albino kid gave me a false smile, while Bakura didn't even turn to look at us. The mutt apparently had no qualms as far as being polite.

"Yugi! What the hell? Why'd you bring _him_ along?" As soon as the words were out of Jounichi's mouth, Honda smacked a hand over his mouth.

"Dude, shut up!"

"What the fuck, man?"

"At least be nice!" Hey, the conehead knew _some_ manners.

"Why should I? He's never been nice to us!" Alright, I'd had enough of his bitching.

"No, mutt, I've never been nice to _you._ While I might not be very pleasant for the rest of the group to be around, as I find them all mildly annoying, you're stupidity surpasses them all. I see no need to feign benevolence towards you. So please, just shut up."

"Uh..." Hm... maybe I'd used words too advanced for the moron.

"Jou, just shut it," Honda muttered, finally shutting the blond up.

"Anyway," Yugi cut in, looking mildly uncomfortable. "What were we doing before?"

"The island thing. You know, who you'd bring with you on an island," Bakura cut in. "Remember? You bastards said I couldn't enslave the natives." He looked very bitter about that... that was slightly concerning. I, of course, couldn't have cared less about who the friendship brigade would have on an island, so I tried to tune them out by going over Kaiba Corp.'s stocks, but it did nothing to distract me. I'd bee working on company business almost non-stop lately (except for the aquarium trip), and after a while, even I have had enough.

"What about you, Kaiba-boy?" All eyes turned to me as soon as Bakura spoke. Surely they didn't expect me to participate in their game, did they?

"Yeah, Kaiba!" Yugi chimed in. "Who would you bring with you on an island?"

"Mokuba," I answered without even looking up. "Obviously."

"Nope," Jounichi shook his stupid blond head. "Gotta be someone in this group right here." So I had to pick from their pathetic group? I sighed, not hiding my irritation.

"Fine then. Let's see. Is there any way off of the island?" Yugi shook his head. "Is it inhabited?"

"It can be if you want. Remember? Bakura wanted to enslave the natives so that they could build his empire, and overthrow the pharaoh." Speaking of the pharaoh...

"Well, then, let's see. Ryou, you're smart, but not exactly gifted in physical prowess. Also, your voice and accent drive me crazy. Mutt... no. Just no. Anzu... I would end up killing you by the end of the first day. You two," I turned to the Ishtars. "You two just creep me out. So no. Bakura, you... concern me. I wouldn't trust you alone with me on an island." He smirked.

"I wouldn't trust me either," he admitted, giving me probably the creepiest, most lewd look I've ever seen, let alone had directed at me.

"... Okay then. Yugi, you kind of annoy me, plus you're too damn naïve. Honda, you're just not very intelligent. So I guess the person I dislike _least_ would be Yami," I concluded. The all just stared at me (except Yami. He was looking at the ground and blushing). I don't think they'd been expecting such an in-depth answer, but it gave me a chance to tell them all exactly what I thought of them. "What?"

"That was... brutally honest," Ryou observed.

"I could expand on any and all of my points."

"No thanks." Didn't think so.

The rest of lunch, they just left me alone. Good, now if I could get them to leave me alone for good, we'd be all set. Just before class, Yami approached me. Great, now he was going to ask me about that stupid Egyptian shit.

"Hey, Kaiba..." He looked unsure of himself, which was good. Maybe he'd take a hint and fuck off.

"What."

"You... really hate us that much?" Jesus, you'd think I'd given him horrible news.

"What? I didn't say that," I protested, although I kind of _had_ said that. Not explicitly, but it had been implied.

"You dislike me least. That gives the impression that you don't like me, but you _really _don't like the rest of them..." Why was he so bothered by this? I hadn't meant to throw him off.

"Look. What I said earlier was about as close to a compliment that anyone (except for Mokuba) will ever get from me." His expression was priceless. I left him there, grasping for words, and pushed all thoughts of Yami and Egypt out of my mind.

Before I left for work, I gave Mokuba a quick call.

"Hey. I'm going to be staying late tonight, so do your homework first!" He sighed heavily. "I mean it, Mokuba! No video games until your homework is done."

"Alright, alright. Just don't be too late."

"Don't worry, I won't. I'll let you know when I'm home."

"Thanks, Seto. Good luck today..."

"Thanks. I'll need it." What I didn't tell him was the reason I had to stay late- to make up for the work I missed by going to the aquarium.

As I'd expected, the morons I have working for me couldn't go one day- one fucking day- without me there. Not to sound full of myself, but I take one day unexpected leave, to which, I might add, I am fully entitled, being the CEO and owner of the entire fucking company, and everything goes to hell. I suppose I should be impressed; it takes talent to screw up so thoroughly in such a small amount of time. I'm not bitter or anything.

Needless to say, I was in no mood for anything even _slightly _Egypt-related. So, needless to say, the second I closed my eyes for the night, I dreamed about Egypt. Of course.

_I didn't know where we were going- it was a "surprise." That was half of the fun... for the pharaoh. Not so much for myself, who was in charge of keeping him safe from harm. _

"_Hurry up, Seth," Atem called back to me as he dragged me through the crowded streets, clutching my wrist tightly. We were almost seventeen- far too old for this sort of childish activity, not to mention that we had a million other responsibilities, to which we should have been attending. The thing about being pharaoh, though, is that when you want a personal day, then you get your personal day. And if you want your high priest to accompany you on you personal day, then your high priest __**will**__ accompany you, no questions asked. It's pretty easy to get your way when your word is law, as Atem had discovered- and used to his advantage, perhaps a little too much._

"_Slow down, please!" I gasped. Finally, we had reached our apparent destination. "Atem, what is the meaning of this?" We were standing, panting, in front of an exotic-looking building, colored beads hanging in strands across the doorway. The faintest sounds of music drifted from it into the street, and the air inside was dimly-lit (there were no windows) and smokey. "Atem, why are we standing outside of a dancers' den?" He grinned at me, and I groaned at his expression. There was no changing his mind. _

"_Come with me." I couldn't refuse a direct order from the pharaoh, but more importantly, I couldn't refuse a direct order from Atem. He dragged me inside. The den was spacious, as there was no furniture to take up room. There were plenty of large pillows and cushions scattered around the room, though, upon which people were lying, some curled up with a significant other. There was a stage at the front of the den, where, illuminated by strategically placed candles, a trio of veiled dancers moved in sync with each other. The music was being played by a small group of musicians who were sitting comfortably to the side of the room. The room was filled with the soft murmur of voices speaking in soft but comfortable tones; people were at ease. Of course, they didn't know that the pharaoh and high priest had just stumbled into the room, either. _

"_Atem," I whispered, not wanting to draw attention. "What are we doing here?" I asked again. He turned to me, beaming happily. _

"_We are going to relax." My expression must have conveyed my disbelief, because he laughed. "Don't look so surprised, Seth. Where do you think I go when no one can find me?" True enough; the pharaoh had this knack of just vanishing. The first few times he had done it, the entire court had been in chaos, fearing for his safety. When it became a common occurrence, though, people learned to work around his absences. _

"_You... You come here? Why here? What if the wrong person figured out who you were?" He could easily be injured, or, gods forbid, killed. _

"_Seth, calm down. Please. Everyone here knows who I am." What?! "They know who I am, but they treat me no differently than the rest of the people here. Do you see? This is where I can go, away from the formalities, to relax." I wasn't sure what to say to that. "Don't be mad, Seth," He whined (no, even the pharaoh wasn't above whining to get his way), his eyes imploring. _

"_I'm not mad," I sighed, trying to put him at ease. "Just... why didn't you ever tell me that you came here?" He actually blushed at this._

"_Because I didn't want you to get mad... and I didn't want you to tell me to stop coming." That was reasonable enough. If he wanted to relax among peers, treated as an equal, who was I to stop him? _

"_But why did you bring me here, then?" He blushed even more._

"_I-I wanted to share it with you. I was lonely without you..." he grabbed my wrist again, pulling me to a large cushion and nest of blankets in the corner of the room. "Come with me!" The couple lounging in the same general area smiled at us, nodding in silent greeting, as Atem pulled me down onto the cushion with him. _

"_What? I-" I was suddenly uncomfortable. Well, physically very comfortable, but... _

"_Shh," Atem whispered, his face lingering too close to my ear to be justifiable. Of course, the way we were sitting was almost indecent- his lean figure was practically nestled against mine, his hand resting on my chest as he looked up at me. Oh gods, those eyes... "I wanted you to have fun too... do you not like it?" My answer clearly meant a great deal to him, although I was unsure why._

"_Of course I like it, but we- what if- will people get the wrong idea?" His expression fell. "What's wrong? What did I say?" _

"_The wrong idea..." he closed his eyes. "What if the idea they get isn't wrong?" What was he saying?_

"_What do you mean?" He didn't answer me before barely brushing his lips against mine, again looking up at me, crimson eyes watching intently for my reaction. "I-I... um..." I sounded simple, but really, I was just surprised. I hadn't expected anything so forward from the pharaoh. _

"_Is that okay?" This time, he was asking me for permission. Right now, looking up at me with such uncertainty, I saw just how human he was. He may be The Pharaoh Atem, but he was still Atem, without the titles. "It's okay if you don't want to," He began, trying to keep his voice steady as he broke eye contact. " I just thought that maybe-" and then I kissed him. _

"Okay, what the hell was that all about?" I stared at the ceiling. It was four in the morning, and I couldn't get back to sleep- not after what I had just seen. I- or Seth, rather- I still refused to believe that I was Seth- had kissed the pharaoh. The pharaoh, of course, being Yami. This was not what I had expected at all. I also was not sure how to feel about it. No, I did not dislike Yami... but that doesn't mean that we were lovers in a past life. It just _doesn't. _

I didn't want to talk about it, but I knew that sooner or later I would have to say something to Yami. I had already snapped at two teachers, but the friendship group hadn't dared to come near me. Even morons like them knew not to fuck with me when I was suffering from a lack of sleep. It really didn't help that I couldn't get that stupid dream out of my head, either. It was ridiculous. It just didn't make sense. Was that why he had wanted me to remember it in the first place? Did he feel that way about me now? This idea didn't bother me as much as it should have. I should have been horrified at the very thought, the very _hint_ that Yami liked me in that way.

I wasn't exactly happy about it, but I wasn't upset. I was more... confused than anything. Not that the dark counterpart of your rival getting his own body and telling you that he knew you in a past life, when he was the pharaoh of Egypt and you were the high priest was confusing in the least.

"K-Kaiba?" Oh shit! I sat up quickly, trying to figure out where the hell I was. Oh... the library. I'd fallen asleep... apparently, I was making up for time lost in the middle of the night. And the person who had awoken me? It would have to be Yami, of course. "Sorry, I just wasn't sure if you knew what time it was..." I looked at the clock.

"Fucking fuck!" It was almost four! I should have been at work already... Yami looked startled by my outburst, his eyes wide. _No, Seto! Don't think about his eyes!_

"Oh, I'm Sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"No, thank you for waking me. I'm late," I explained as I stuffed my books into my bag, hoping that he wouldn't notice their subject.

"Ancient Egypt? Did... did you remember something?" Shit, Yami. This was not the time!

"I said I would tell you if I thought of anything. Now excuse me." I avoided the question as I sprinted out of the building.

Ugh. It had been another horrible evening... but fortunately, it was Friday. That meant that I could sleep in- at least a little. Also, it meant that I wouldn't have to go out of my way to avoid Yami, as long as I stayed holed up inside the mansion like usual. I should have known that I wouldn't get off the hook that easily. I woke up, feeling as if I hadn't slept at all. Of course, the fact that I had been dreaming about the pharaoh didn't help.

_We were at a very rich banquet, Atem seated at the head of the table. He had placed his hand on mine, and I was trying my hardest not to look at the rest of the people around the table. I could feel my cheeks turning red, and I was very nervous. I didn't know what to expect, as the pharaoh hadn't discussed anything with me. Judging my the look on Mahad's face, he also had no idea what the pharaoh was planning. Suddenly, Atem cleared his throat, and I felt my stomach churn._

"_Hello, friends," he began, effectively silencing the group. Despite his relaxed demeanor, I could tell that he was nervous, and that in itself was enough reason for me to be. "Thank you for joining me, and I will let you resume your meal in a moment. I have but one announcement; a happy one at that." Oh no, he wouldn't... "I have chosen Seth to be my life partner. Please, sit back down. When I die, my closest living relative will become pharaoh. I have already decided this, after long deliberation, and I trust that you will respect the decisions of your pharaoh. Thank you." He sat back down, turning to Mahad as if nothing had even happened, and the room slowly filled with hushed chatter. Everyone present had been expecting Atem to announce his choice of a __**wife. **__Someone who could produce an heir. Mahad's jaw was still hanging open, and some of the lesser priests were glaring at me. I glared right back at them; how __**dare**__ they disrespect their superior? I was surrounded by idiots. _

I sat up in bed. Something about priests, incompetent underlings... Wow. Talk about similarities... I was surrounded by morons in both lives! But really, I was concerned. I couldn't stop thinking about what I should tell Yami, and what I actually wanted. Seth and Atem had been lovers. So if I'm willing to admit that I am Seth, then I am entering myself into a relationship with Yami. I would have to choose between accepting Yami or rejecting him. Also, I suddenly realized, Yami remembered me as his Seth, whom he loves. It would stand to reason that Yami would be totally in love with me. I hadn't really thought about love at this point. When you are as busy as I, you find that there is simply no time for romance. And now, this possibility that I had never even considered the idea of Yami as anything other than rival. I didn't want to rush into anything, but at the same time, I didn't want to hurt Yami any more than was absolutely necessary. Normally, I wouldn't give a shit whose feelings I hurt, but for some reason, all I could imagine were those injured eyes...

* * *

_Dig deeper, remember  
All you've been and all you've left behind.  
Welcome home, my dear._

* * *

A/N: Hey, thanks for reading. I know this chapter is called "The End Complete," but that's only because the song that the lyrics are from is "The End Complete III: The End Complete," and I thought that was a little long for a title.

Please review? please? Thanks!

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

~alex~


	3. Chapter3:Cuts Marked In The March Of Men

(I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or anything like that.)

* * *

~Chapter Three: Cuts Marked In The March Of Men~

* * *

It had been almost a week since my last encounter with Yami, and I had been avoiding him like the plague. Every time I noticed that he was looking my way, or about to approach me, I would hurry away in the opposite direction. I'm sure he noticed my deliberate avoidance of him, but I still had some things to work out before I was ready to confront him. I had been having dreams every night, every time I took a nap. They all pretty much followed the same general theme: Seth and Atem, clearly in love, going about daily life. There were some things I saw that made me blush just remembering them. Oddly enough, I felt myself being almost pulled towards Yami. I wasn't sure if it was just because of the idea that I _may_ have been Seth, and seeing the dreams, or if I was actually having feelings for him. He was beautiful, even I would admit that, and he had an agreeable personality. He seemed patient, and he wasn't trying to force me into anything, even though it was obvious (to me, anyway,) that he was miserably alone. For some reason, seeing his sorrow hurt me deeply. Which is why I, against my better judgment, placed a quick phone call into work, announcing that I would be absent. I would probably pay for my employees' incompetence when I went back, on Monday, but this was necessary. I waited outside the doors, until finally, a familiar spiky-haired pharaoh came into view. Maybe it was because I had been trying not to even look at him unless absolutely necessary, but the moment I saw his face, my stomach did some weird, ridiculous thing, so that I felt as if something was lodged into my chest.

"Yami," I called, just loudly enough for him to hear me. He looked utterly surprised to see me there, waiting for him.

"Hello..." He responded uncertainly, excusing himself from his smaller half. Yugi looked at me with concern, the expression on his face changing to a harsher one as he met my eyes. It was a look saying something along the lines of "you hurt him, you die." So the shrimp had a little fight in him, when it came to things that really mattered to him.

"Hello," I repeated nervously, swallowing to calm my nerves. This shouldn't be that hard! "I was hoping that you would join me at my house this afternoon?" His eyes widened in surprise; whatever he had been expecting to hear, this was not it.

"O-Oh! Um... I guess that could be arranged..." I smiled at his nervousness. "Let me tell Yugi?"

"Of course." He returned to the group, speaking quietly with Yugi. Yugi nodded, smiling, and Yami came walking quickly back. As soon as Yami had turned his back, Yugi gave me that look again. I nodded in acknowledgment. "Come with me." We walked to the lot, where I had my limousine waiting. Yami blushed slightly as I opened the door for him... I must admit, it was very becoming. "Make yourself comfortable, I just need to make a few calls first." This was true, although the reason I had chosen to make the calls then and there was mainly because I didn't want to discuss anything until we got home. Before I could make any calls, however, my phone rang. It was Mokuba.

"Hey, big brother," he chimed happily. "I'm gonna hang out with Yugi."

"Um, okay..." This was rather odd... I mean sure, he hung out with them often, but usually he came to see me in person, or asked, rather than announced...

"Yeah, he said that Yami would be with you, so I wanted to give you two some alone time!"

"Why would you think that I would need that?" I snapped, irritated by his implications.

"I'm pretty sure you know why I would think that," he replied, snickering.

"Whatever. Call me later." I was done trying to win. It never worked.

"Have fuuuu~uunnn!" He sang before hanging up on me. That little brat.... he would be in trouble when he got home, that was for sure. For the rest ride home, I made a couple calls to the imbeciles at my company, trying to make sure that they fucked up as little as possible in my absence. And then we were home, and I had to think of a way to tell Yami... almost as soon as we stepped into the sitting room, he was staring at me, as if trying to read my mind. I sighed.

"Here, why don't we go in here. It's more comfortable." I led him to my room, where he sat on the side of the bed. I sat on the chair, playing with the zipper of my coat nervously. This was so unlike me; I don't _get_ nervous. But I was, and I'm sure Yami noticed it, although he said nothing.

"What did you wish to discuss?" He asked quietly, and I could hear the slight strain in his voice. I realized that he was afraid of this meeting, of the outcome of our conversation. Because it wasn't hard to figure out why I'd brought him here; obviously I wanted to discuss Egypt, and my memories or lack thereof. I took a deep breath, and then, for whatever reason, I stood up from the chair, pulled him to his feet, and... yeah, okay. I kissed him. It was a good kiss, too, nothing wimpy. He responded well. He returned my kiss, wrapping his arms around my neck to pull me closer (I was quite a bit taller). When we finally parted, I saw that his eyes were shining with tears. "Y-you remember? I mean, you remember... us?"

"Yes, Yami. I remember," I told him softly, and in that moment, I knew that I had made the right decision. The expression on his face... it was as if no matter what I did, seeing that expression made everything worthwhile. I pulled him close again, kissing him softly. He pressed his body against me, making me shiver involuntarily. "I remember what we had." He looked so happy that I didn't care how corny I sounded. He pulled me closer, clutching at my chest, and we were kissing again, passionately and frantically, as if it were our last day on earth. Suddenly, though, I was aware of more tears on his face, and his shoulders were shaking with quiet sobs. What had I done? "Yami? What's the matter? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-" he shook his head, silencing me.

"No. It's just... I was so sure that you wouldn't remember, and that you would just... be done with me. I waited so long to see you again, but when I did... you didn't remember me at all." I felt awful, but there was no way I could have known when I first met him.

"I'm sorry..."

"Please, don't be... because you remember now, right?" I nodded. "And... well..." he blushed, refusing to meet my eyes. "Do you want to... resume that relationship? I understand if you do not want to..." I put my hand on the back of his head, pulling him in for another kiss. He once again reciprocated the kiss, pouring himself into it. And then he was on top of me, straddling my lap, as I sat on the bed. Wait, how had that happened? Whatever; at that moment, I didn't really care how it had happened. I pulled him with me as I went to the head of the bed, where I sat propped up with my pillows. Yami knelt there over me, on his hands and knees, his face level with mine.

"Yami..." I murmured as I pulled him down on top of me, so that I could hold him close to my chest while I kissed him. After a while, we just sat there, him curled up next to me like in that second dream I'd had. I was... very comfortable. And happy, I realized. Really happy. I hadn't felt like this in years, with the business taking up all of my time and attention. I stroked his hair back from his face, his blond bangs immediately springing back into place. I leaned forward and kissed his soft cheek, making him blush slightly. God, he was gorgeous... I suddenly flipped us so that he was laying on the bed, me kneeling over him. His expression was surprised, but not displeased, so I put my hand on his chest, casually running my fingers up and down his torso. He shivered, closing his eyes briefly.

"S-Seto..." he whispered, making my heart race. He had only rarely called me that before. It had always been Kaiba, and that one time, Seth. Hearing my own name, though, from those lips... it was enough to drive anyone crazy.

"God, Yami," I muttered as I slowly kissed him, starting with his cheek, moving to the space behind the jawbone and under the ear, and moving down his neck. He was clutching at me frantically, like I would disappear if he let go. I couldn't blame him, though; he'd been waiting for me for... how long? Too long, at any rate... He made a small sound of pleasure as I bit down lightly on his collar bone. One advantage to the dreams was that I was able to remember what Yami liked. I paused for a moment, looking down at the body beneath me. It was perfect in every way, from his long arms and legs to his beautiful bronzed skin, and the way he was looking at me only made me happier to be here with him. I trailed my hand along his chest again, this time stopping at the hem of his shirt. I didn't want to be too forward, but... ah, fuck it. I slid my hand underneath the black material, reveling in the smooth warmth that lay beneath it. He sucked his breath in quickly at the contact, his long fingers tugging at my own shirt. Within moments, our shirts were... somewhere in the room, flung to the side. We would find them later. "Yami," I managed between frantic kisses. "How- how far? I mean, what do you want to do?"

He looked straight at me, and, in all seriousness, said, "You." My eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Well, that was forward..." He laughed a little at my expression before latching his arms around my neck again. Just as I started to unbutton his pants... my phone rang. Son of a bitch. "What?" I snapped into the phone.

"Mr. Kaiba, sir, we have a situation." Goddammit, if Mokuba had gotten himself kidnapped again...

"What is it?" What the fuck could be so important that he would disobey direct orders to not call me?

"Well, there is a _man_ here to see you... I believe you know who I mean?"

"No, I don't."

"Well... the one we talked about before. He's here, and he won't leave until he's spoken with you." Shit. I had wanted to hear from this guy, but I couldn't, not when things were going so well!

"Very well. I'll be there." I turned to Yami, who was watching me with concern. "Sorry, but something urgent came up..."

"Is everything okay? Seto, what's the matter?" I hesitated. Did I really want to drag Yami into all of this?

"You probably would be better knowing nothing of the matter," I told him, but the look I his eyes made it clear that I would not get out of explaining things that easily.

"I don't care what it is. Just..." He stopped, uncertain.

"You want in?" he nodded. "Even if it might be dangerous?" He nodded again. "Fine," I sighed. "Come with me; I'll explain in the car."

We took one of my smaller sports cars- the limo was nice, but it was kind of bulky, and it wasn't good for escaping. Not that anything bad was going to happen that would require us to flee, but it's always good to be safe.

"So what's going on?" Yami asked cautiously. I sighed, wondering how much I should tell him.

"Well... you know how Mokuba and I were adopted by Gozaburo Kaiba?" He nodded. "Well, when he died, the company went to me, obviously. Now, there's a guy who obviously works for _someone,_ but he claims to be working for Gozaburo, who, according to this guy, isn't dead." Yami raised his eyebrows.

"And now he want's his company back?" Ah, if only it were that simple...

"Sort of. That's part of it, anyway. When he died, I was also given custody of Mokuba, as we had no relatives willing to take him. Even though I was young, I was responsible for him as well as myself. Well, now that Gozaburo is possibly back in the picture, he's been making vague threats towards Mokuba's safety, basically saying that Gozaburo is still technically his guardian. My lawyers assure me that this is not the case, but you have to remember how clever this bastard is. When he wants something, he gets it, regardless. How do you think Kaiba Corp. ever got so big to begin with? I can tell you right now that it sure as hell wasn't by legal means." Yami and I sat in silence for a moment while he digested this new information. I had to resist the urge to glance over at him. He was cute, but it would be in our best interests to remain on the road.

"If you were made the legal guardian of Mokuba at the time of Gozaburo's death, then they can't just go back on it, even if it turns out that he is alive." I nodded.

"Yeah, I hope it works out that way..."

"We don't even know if he's alive, though, do we? I mean, this guy that you mentioned is just a go-between. It could be someone from a competing company trying to scare you into doing what they want you to, or some other wacko." I laughed at that.

"Yes, that is very true. Because when I last saw Gozaburo, he looked pretty dead. But like I said, the guy is crafty. I wouldn't put it past him to somehow fake his death and hide out for a while." Yami very, _very_ cautiously put his hand on top of mine, as if he thought I would get angry about it. Hell, of course I wouldn't get angry! My heart was doing weird things at the contact, and I mentally cursed whoever was responsible for interrupting us, just when things were getting interesting.

"I know it's a big deal, but don't stress out too much. We'll make sure it works out well," he promised, and something in his voice raised goosebumps on my skin. I glanced quickly at him, and I swear, he was almost... glowing, with a sort of black-purple haze.

"Um...?" My confusion must have been pretty amusing to watch.

"Shadow magic," he explained, grinning an almost frightening grin. "Do you believe in it now, my dear _Seth?_" he teased.

"I don't know, _Atem,_ it seems pretty hard to believe," I joked right back. I was pretty proud of myself; I'd been really nice all afternoon, and I hadn't once gotten the urge to snap at Yami. Maybe those dreams or whatever they are were messing with my head...

When we arrived, we were directed to one of the conference rooms. Yami stopped outside the door.

"I really shouldn't intrude; this is your company, and the guy wants to talk to you... but I want to make damn sure that nothing goes terribly wrong."

"What do you mean by that?"

"That I don't want to have to lose you again," he replied sadly. Wait. Was I missing something here? I couldn't dwell on it right then, though. I had more important things to deal with.

"Come in with me, but don't do anything drastic," I ordered, feeling myself slip back into my workplace persona. If Yami noticed the change in me, he didn't say anything, just nodding and following me into the room. This man... was not what I had expected. He was short and thin, with balding blondish hair. He seemed even more nervous than most of my employees when they have to tell me that they've fucked up, which is saying something.

"What do you want?" I snapped. If this guy was going to threaten me, or more importantly, threaten Mokuba, then I wouldn't waste any time with manners. Fuck manners.

"Oh, Mr. Kaiba, it's an honor to meet you," he practically groveled at my feet as I ignored his outstretched hand.

"I don't care. What was it that you wanted?" His demeanor changed immensely; he smiled, and I could tell right then that even if this guy wasn't working for Gozaburo, he was still as unctuous and untrustworthy as him. It was just the way he smiled, like he had everyone right where he wanted them, or like he knew some important secret that you didn't know. In short, I hated him instantly.

"I have a proposition for you, Mr. Kaiba."

"Well, the answer is no. Now if you'll excuse me, I have other things to which I must attend."

"Actually, I think the answer will be yes- if you'll hear me out. And trust me, you _want_ to hear me out." Okay, was this creepy son-of-a-bitch threatening me? _ME?!_

"Well, then you'd better talk fast." His smug, self-assured attitude was making me nervous.

"Well, you see, as I told your secretary the other day, I have been employed by a certain relative of sorts of yours."

"Yes, I've heard."

"Well, he's not happy that you took his company and changed every last detail about it. He loved his company the way it was, and in his opinion, you've defiled it."

"Okay, where are you going with this? Hurry up. I don't have all day to waste listening to you."

"Well, since you took what he loved most and corrupted it, _violated_ it, he feels that it would be fitting to do the same to you."

"So what you're trying to say is that..." I knew where he was going with this, but I didn't want to take any chances and let anything slip that could be used against me.

"That you'd better keep an eye on your _dear_ brother." That bastard!

"Well you can tell your _employer,_ who is in no way any relation of mine, that if he even so much as looks at Mokuba, he will sorely regret it." Yeah, it was kind of an empty-sounding threat, but my tone of voice and overall demeanor made up for it. "Now get out."

"Now, now. You didn't even listen to the proposition. He would be willing to leave your brother alone, under the conditions that you renounce your claim to the company to him, then working as an employee."

"Like hell," I hissed through gritted teeth. I was trying so hard not to just rip the guy's fucking head off.

"Well, then I guess he's going to have to make his money some other way... involving Mokuba." At that, my blood ran cold. He couldn't have said what I thought he said. He wouldn't do that to Mokuba... would he? I couldn't take that chance.

"Get the fuck out of my sight before I kill you," I demanded. He shrugged, exiting the room and leaving Yami and I alone. I was shaking; I knew I was, and my weakness was just pissing me off.

"Seto?" Yami spoke, startling me. "Seto, we won't let that happen." I spun to him, suddenly angry at him.

"What do you know about it? I mean really? You don't know shit about this man. He is ruthless, Yami, and he's unstoppable. I learned my tactics from him. We are fucked!" He looked startled, and then, to my horror, tears began welling in his eyes. "Yami, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell, I just... I thought I was done with this. With him. I should have known that even 'death' wouldn't stop him..." then, as if trying to make me feel even more guilty, Yami came over, putting his arms around my waist and holding me tightly.

"I know... I'm sorry. I spoke without thinking. But Seto, if it comes to it, I could do something about him."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that if he hurts you or Mokuba in any way, he will become very familiar with the shadow realm." Well... that was one way of dealing with him... possibly the best way, too.

"Yami, how does that work? Would he ever be able to get back?" he shook his head.

"No. If his heart is pure, he would probably be able to break free, but with him... the shadows would just absorb him. With how dark his heart is, he's practically one of them already." I didn't know what to say. That speech was pretty epic.

"Well, that's good. Right?"

"Yes, it is very good." He smiled at me. "So don't worry too much. We'll just keep Mokuba under lock and key until we deal with this." Oh, shit! Mokuba!

"Speaking of which, we have to go get Mokuba _now._" I pulled him with me as he tried to calm me down. What if they already had him? They probably did... fucking hell. I couldn't even protect my own brother!

"Seto, just _listen to me!_" I stopped in my tracks, feeling like something had yanked me backwards.

"Did you just...?"

"Yes, I did. But only because you wouldn't fucking listen to me." I just stared at him. I'd never heard him speak like that. Even when all hell broke loose, he kept his calm.

"I thought you were only supposed to use those in emergencies?" He shrugged.

"I'm a pharaoh. I do what I want." I had to laugh at that one; I was beginning to enjoy this dry sense of humor.

"That's true, but we still have to find Mokuba!" He reached into my pocket and pulled out my cell phone.

"Have you thought of calling him, maybe?" Wow, I must be fucking retarded.

"Oh... didn't think of that." I called him, and to my immense relief, he answered. "Mokuba! You're okay!"

"What are you even talking about?" He was really cute when he sounded like that, so confused... but that's not the point!

"Listen, there are going to be some guys coming after you-"

"Shit, not again!"

"Watch your mouth!"

"Watch yours! Anyway, thank you for warning me, but I think I'll be okay." No, that wasn't going to fly.

"Oh? And how do you figure you'll be okay? Are you going to handle it like the last five _hundred_ times you've gotten kidnapped?" Yami shot me a disapproving look.

"Well, actually, considering the fact that I'm hanging out with a group of like ten people, two of which in control of _very_ strong shadow magic, I think that I'll be okay." For once in my life, I was glad that Mokuba was friends with Bakura and Marik. (Malik? No, Marik. Yeah. Stupid thing to do, making your names one letter apart.)

"Fine, but they'd better not let you out of their sight, do you understand?"

"Yes, big brother," he whined, clearly not understanding the gravity of the situation.

"Mokuba, I'm serious. These guys... they're dangerous. They won't pull any punches." That got his attention.

"Who are they?" Should I tell him? Yeah, I guess he deserved to know.

"Well... they claim to be working for Gozaburo." the line was silent for so long that I almost thought he had hung up.

"How? How does that even work?" Good, he was sounding nervous. Not that I liked to scare my little brother, but sometimes, being afraid can save your life.

"Believe me, I don't know. They say that he faked his death. Just please, be careful..."

"I will, but you have to be careful too!" I smiled. This was why I loved Mokuba so much. He was so sweet.

"Don't worry about me. You can have your thief and your... whatever Marik is. I have a pharaoh." He snickered into the phone.

"Oh? In what way?"

"More ways than one," I told him, hoping for a good reaction. I was not disappointed.

"What? What the hell. I didn't really mean that... you-you?! And Yami?! What?!"

"Well, I was his priest and lover in my past life..." at this point, Yami broke in.

"Seto, what the hell are you telling him?!" He shrieked, causing Mokuba to stop making gagging sounds long enough to laugh.

"Well, that was more than I needed to know, but I'm happy for you, I guess. Thanks for the heads-up, and enjoy 'your pharaoh.' And spare me the details."

"Alright. Be careful," I warned, for like the millionth time.

"I _know,_ Seto," He sighed. "I love you."

"I love you too. Bye." I turned back to Yami, who was playing absently with a strand of blond hair.

"So, now Mokuba knows about us?" Uh-oh... I hadn't even thought about the fact that Yami might _not _want everyone to know...

"Shit! I'm sorry. I didn't even think... do you care if Yugi and company knows? I can call him and tell him not to say anything..." Yami hugged me, smiling happily.

"No, no. It's fine. I'm glad they know," he reassured me. "But now that this 'situation' has been dealt with for the time being..." Hm, I saw where this was going, and I liked it.

"Now that the 'situation' has been dealt with for now, we can go back to the mansion-" he interrupted me mid-sentence.

"And finish where we left off..."

* * *

_You'll notice the one that you had loved in dreams is here among the others..._

* * *

A/N: thanks for reading... I thought that this song quote worked amazingly well. :D So I hope that you like it, and I'll update soon!

Heh, sorry for teasing you with the lemony bit, then not having lemon... next chapter, I promise.

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

Also, PLEASE review. it's sad when the only review I have is from my beta... :'(

~alex~


	4. Chapter 4: Wake Up

(I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or anything else)

* * *

~Chapter Four: Wake Up~

* * *

Even though Mokuba had assured me that he would be fine, I couldn't help but worry. Yami tried his best to calm me on the way back, and I have to say, he was doing a pretty good job of distracting me. Unfortunately, I couldn't be too distracted, as I was still driving, but that's totally beside the point.

I called Mokuba again as soon as we got home.

"What do you want now?" he answered.

"Is that any way to answer the phone?" I scolded. "But yeah, I'm still worried. I know, I know, you told me you'd be fine, but just promise me that if anything happens, at all, call me immediately."

"Alright. Are you done now?" That brat!

"Yes, I'm done. But BE CAREFUL."

"Okay, now goodbye!" And then he hung up on me. I stared at my phone for a few seconds, before Yami failed to contain his laughter.

"What's so funny?" I snapped.

"You are something else, you know that?"

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" He laughed again, and I felt a little better when he took my hands in his own.

"You act like a total ass around other people, but-"

"I _am _an ass," I corrected, but he shook his head.

"No, you aren't. But you act like one around other people, but then with Mokuba, you act like a mother hen-"

"No, I do not!" I resented being compared to a bird, and such a stupid one at that.

"Stop interrupting meeeee!!!" he whined, tugging on my arms. "**Anyway... **you act like a total jerk around everyone else, but with Mokuba, you're a good person. You really aren't as much of a douchebag as you let on." That was... a compliment? Sort of?

"Um.... thanks?" He laughed again, pulling me down to his level for a kiss. He leaned so that his lips were almost touching my ear.

"I love you," he whispered, both his tone of voice and hot breath on my neck making me shiver. I pulled him into a more passionate embrace, biting his bottom lip in the process.

"So, my pharaoh," I began, once we had parted. "What is your desire?" He smirked.

"Well, priest. I believe you know my desires..." Good. That was the right answer.

"As you wish, Pharaoh." And with that, I scooped a surprised Yami into my arms, bridal style, and carried him into my room. He struggled weakly to be put down, so I dropped him onto the bed. And, inevitably, my stupid fucking phone rang. "What?" I snapped as I answered it.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Mr. Kaiba, but we have a proposition from another company..." Fuck this shit.

"It had better be a really important proposition, to interrupt me. Especially today, after an earlier interruption." Yeah, I was pissed, and the guy knew it.

"Well, uh, Tanoshii gaming company has offered to buy us out, and it's a very good offer-"

"I thought I gave very specific orders to _not _disturb me today, unless it's a dire emergency?"

"But Mr. Kaiba, we-"

"No buts. You are impeding upon my love life, and if you ruin it, you'll wish you were never born. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have something- or rather, some_one_ to do." I snapped the phone shut, turning it off and throwing it across the room. Yami watched as it hit the wall.

"I think you broke it..."

"I don't care. I'll get another one. I have, like, ten of them." I pushed him back against the pillows. "So where were we?" He blushed furiously.

"Well, I'm pretty sure we were discussing the national debt," he joked, straight-faced for about two seconds, before breaking into another smile.

"You're right. And speaking of debts, I believe I owe you," I whispered into his ear as I (successfully, this time) undid his pants. He moaned a little as I began kissing his chest and stomach, fumbling to help me as I removed my own pants. Finally, they were off. I was about to move on from that, but remembered something, and stood up, pulling a confused Yami with me. "Here," I murmured to him, pulling the covers back so that he could slip back into bed. For whatever reason, the pharaoh had always been very self-conscious about sex, and felt like he always had to be covered up. He would get very uncomfortable if he was laying, naked and unprotected, out in the open. He pulled me in behind him, and I was more than happy to comply.

"Thanks..." he said, looking suddenly very uncomfortable.

"What's the matter? We don't have to do anything, if you don't want..." He wouldn't do that to me now, would he?

"No, it isn't that. I'm just... you're sure that you're not just playing along with me, trying to make me feel better?" He wouldn't look at me, so I lifted his chin until he made eye contact with me.

"For one thing, when have I ever tried to make anyone feel better, other than Mokuba?" He almost cracked a smile at that. "For another thing, I wouldn't be able to do that, even if I really wanted to. You should, by now, know that I have absolutely no imagination, so I couldn't possibly make up a story about you dragging me halfway across town so that we could cuddle in a dancer's den. I just can't come up with that shit." His eyes widened, a smile stretching across his face.

"You do remember! Gods, Seto..." His eyes were filling with tears.

"Hey, it's okay!" I smoothed his hair back from his face.

"I know it's okay, now that I know for sure..." He pulled me down on top of him. "I love you so much..." he mumbled, his face pressed against my neck.

"I love you too," I replied, and it was true. I really did love him; I probably had from that first battle, when I still thought he was Yugi. I didn't realize it, though, until he... reminded me. And now, here he was beneath me, clinging to me like I would disappear if he let go... I began kissing his neck again, my hands running over every inch of skin. He was so perfect, and the little sounds of pleasure he was making were becoming more urgent and needy. Well, we couldn't have that, now could we? I very tentatively slipped a hand beneath the waistband of his Kuriboh boxers, but stopped immediately when he tensed up. He let out what sounded like a cross between a whine and a question. "Do you want me to stop?" He growled a little.

"No! I don't want you to stop! I'm fine, dammit, so stop acting like I'm going to break! You should know by now that I am perfectly capable of..." He trailed off, his already flushed cheeks burning more brightly.

"Yes? What is it that you are capable of?" I poked fun at him. He scowled, although I wiped that look off of his face quickly enough when I resumed my exploration of his body. He arched into my touch, hiding his face against my chest as his breath became more erratic. It was pretty obvious that he wanted me (but then again, who doesn't?). "Do you want to...?"

"Yes, already! Do you have anything.... you know." Yes, I did know, and no, I didn't have any. I didn't really expect to have my former rival sharing my bed so soon.

"Eh... I'll be right back," I promised, kissing his forehead as I slipped out of the bed. He looked sad to see me go, even if I would be gone for a few minutes, tops. When I got in the bathroom, I fumbled around with the drawers and cabinets. We had so many cabinets! Well, when you have as much money as I do, you can afford to buy any health and beauty products that you want, as well as shelving for them. So naturally, Mokuba and I had just about every product out there. Except, apparently, for lube. Of course, the _one thing_ that I need, we don't have. Probably because neither of us got much action (that I knew of). Aha! There was a jar of vaseline! Mokuba used it in the winter when his hands got so dry that the skin cracked. It even said on the bottle that it was a good lubricant. They probably didn't mean the kind that I needed, but it would work in a pinch. I had to control the urge to sprint back to my room, but judging by the impatient look on Yami's face, I probably should have.

"Hurry up, Seto!" I fixed him with a stern look.

"Yami, be patient."

"Seto, it has been 3000 years since I got laid." Well, when he put it that way... I got back in the bed, and he practically attacked me.

"Good point." I moved to prepare him (I didn't want to hurt him, after all), but he shook his head.

"Do you think I was just twiddling my thumbs just now while you were gone?" Damn, he was eager. Not that I minded, of course...

"Alright then... so I guess you're ready?" Usually, I have no troubles talking; I am always sure of myself, and I never get very uncomfortable... of course, usually I'm not getting ready to fuck my lover from a past life. Funny how that works.

"More than." Alright then. I quickly rid myself of my boxers (and before you ask, yes, they have a blue eyes white dragon print. Happy?) and, kissing Yami with fervor, slicked us up. There isn't really a tasteful way to say any of this, so I'm not even going to try. As soon as we were... sufficiently lubricated, I pushed him back, pinning him down by his shoulders.

"I love you," I whispered, as I slowly pushed into him. He winced, gritting his teeth, so I did my best to remain totally still. "I'm sorry..." He shook his head.

"No. I'm okay. Go." Well, alright... if he insisted. I began moving, gently... dear gods, it was better than I remembered. He was absolutely perfect. He sounded like he was okay, and the pained expression had left, so I started thrusting harder and faster. He seemed to enjoy that, thrusting back to meet me, and making very soft moans with each thrust. Shit, I wasn't going to last long... I began stroking his own length, and found that his arms were around my shoulders, grasping at me with enough force to break the skin. His eyes were closed tightly, and he cried out softly as he came. His muscles clenching around me, coupled with the sight of him writhing beneath me, calling my name was too much for me to handle, and I came not long after. We lay there panting, Yami still clinging to my shoulders, as if for dear life.

"You okay, there?" I asked.

"Yeah," he managed shakily, burying his face into my chest. I kissed the top of his head, rubbing little circles on his back to comfort him.

"I didn't hurt you too much, did I?" I'd tried to be gentle, but...

"Just a little..." His tone of voice and slightly pained expression weren't exactly convincing.

"I'm sorry," I told him sincerely. I really did feel bad. I hadn't wanted to hurt him at all, but he had been so persistent... I cradled him against my chest, smiling at him as he yawned. "You can sleep; I'll be right here," I told him. He smiled at me, and I know it sounds totally corny and cliché, but I don't really care. It was like... seeing the sun for the first time in years.

"Thanks..." He trailed off, laying his head against my chest and closing his eyes. Sure, I'd seen him smile before, but never like this... other than in my dreams of Egypt. This was pure, unbridled happiness, as if everything was right in the world, as opposed to his usual smile, which was almost always laced with a deeper sorrow. I swear, I don't know how that group of theirs hadn't noticed anything, when it was so clear to me that he was miserable. Or at least Yugi. I mean, they'd shared a body for almost three years, so he should be able to tell when Yami was unhappy, right? Perhaps he had noticed, and just didn't know what to do about had become obvious to me that the only thing that could make Yami truly happy was being with me. Now that I had begun to remember our past life together, it was beginning to get increasingly obvious that we belonged to each other. Yeah, it sounds totally cheesy and girly, but it's the only way to describe it. Sure, we were both guys, but really, what did that matter? We loved each other regardless, and we made each other happy. What else mattered besides that? I felt so peaceful with Yami laying beside me, watching his content expression as he slept. I blinked, trying to stay awake, but gave in to sleep a moment later.

_There was so much blood... and Ra, the pain! I'd never felt such pain in my life._

"_S-Seth! Seth, no! Don't die..." That voice... I knew that voice! I fought to focus my eyes on the figure kneeling above me, cradling me in his lap._

"_Atem?" _

"_Yes... Seth, it's okay! I'm here... You're going to be okay..." Tears were coursing down his face, and we both knew that I definitely wouldn't be okay. Gods, there was so much pain. It was coming in waves, now. I coughed, my body spasming with even more intense pain, and I could feel that I was coughing up blood. But Atem... I had to make sure that he knew..._

"_I-I'm sorry," I whispered. "I didn't- I couldn't- I've failed you, my pharaoh..." _

"_No!" He shook his head with fervor. "No, you haven't failed me. Please..." There was no way I would pull through, not with a gaping wound like that in my abdomen... _

"_Atem, I'm so sorry... I love you. I love you more than anything, and I never meant for it to end this way." _

"_I-I know. I love you too, Seth. Gods, I love you; don't die... please! What will I do without you? I- I don't want to live, if you're not with me..." I weakly raised a finger to his lips._

"_Shh, don't say that, love. You still have much ahead of you." I swallowed, with great effort. I could feel myself fading, but held on just a little longer. I had to, for him. "Just remember that I will always love you, even to the afterlife." He nodded, hugging me close to his body. _

"_I'm sorry, Seth. I should have been more careful-"_

"_No," I interrupted. "It is an honor to die protecting my pharaoh- but more importantly, protecting the one that I love." Ouch... it hurt to breathe..._

"_I will always love you, Seth-" He broke off, sobbing. _

"_I am sure we will meet again, my love... do not dwell on me too much- Egypt needs you."_

"_But I need you!" _

"_No, you don't. I love you, Atem. May the gods protect you always..." All I could see was his tearstained face, and then just his eyes..._

I awoke with a start, making Yami stir slightly in his sleep beside me. What the fuck had that been all about? I stroked Yami's cheek, realizing that my hand was shaking. The intensity of that dream... I was never letting him away from me again. The pain that had been in his voice and his eyes as he clung to my body as the life left it far surpassed the physical pain that I had been feeling. I could see why he was so intent that I should remember him. He'd had to wait for me for 3000 years, with only memories and the desperate hope that we would meet... no wonder he seemed so exhausted all the time. But... why had I not passed to the afterlife? And he, as well? It didn't make much sense. Not that I was complaining that we'd been given a second chance, but still... unless I had been so determined to be reunited that I had blatantly refused to pass... I hugged Yami close to my body.

"I love you," I whispered into his ear, even though he couldn't hear me. "And I always will..."

* * *

_So leave yourself intact  
'Cause I will be coming back.  
In a phrase to cut these lips,  
I love you._

_The morning will come  
In the press of every kiss  
With your head upon my chest  
Where I will annoy you  
With every waking breath  
Until you decide to wake up.

* * *

_A/N: There. hopefully that made up for the last chapter teasing you with lemon... I thought this song was perfect for this chapter. :D

Review, please!

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

~alex~


	5. Chapter 5: The Final Cut

(I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the songs I reference)

* * *

~Chapter Five: The Final Cut~

* * *

We lay like that for a little over an hour before Yami started to wake up. I hadn't been able to fall asleep after the dream, but I was content to just lay there and watch him sleep. Wow... that sounds creepy, doesn't it? Well, it's not, okay?

"S-Seto?" I smiled as Yami yawned hugely, reaching for me without opening his eyes.

"Hey," I greeted him, tucking some strands of hair behind his ear. His eyes opened, and as soon as he saw my face, his expression turned to worry.

"Seto? What's wrong? What happened?" I paused, not sure if I wanted to ruin the moment by bringing up something so morbid. "Don't tell me it's nothing, Seto." Damn; he'd read my mind. I decided to get straight to the point.

"Yami... what happened to me?" He froze, his eyes widening and his face draining of all color.

"What do you mean?" His voice was shaky, and he looked like he would be sick.

"Yami, I'm sorry... I had a dream, and there was so much blood... and you were there. I didn't want to leave you, but it hurt, and then... I couldn't..." He buried his face in his hands. "Yami?"

"I'm sorry, Seto... it was my fault. Completely. I should have been more careful; I shouldn't have been out that day! We knew he would be around, and he'd sent threats! I-I was so stupid-"

"Yami, calm down! It's okay, I'm here now, and we're both okay!" He closed his eyes, breathing deeply to calm himself. "See? We're okay. Now start from the beginning." He nodded once.

"I apologize... So, you know Bakura? And how much we hate each other?" I nodded. "And you know that he was a great thief. Well... he hated me deeply. At the time, I believed it was unfounded, although now I understand that he blamed me for the death of his family." Huh? I must have looked confused, because Yami explained further. "I was the pharaoh, and his family had been murdered under orders from the pharaoh. Although it was not under my rule, but the rule of my father, Bakura hated anything that represented the pharaoh's power. So basically, he began sending messages, threatening my life, trying to frighten me. I... I was stupid. So fucking stupid. I didn't pay any attention to them, assuming that they were just another prank from someone..." He shook his head as if clearing his thoughts. "But that's over now... the point is, I was careless, and I would have died, if you hadn't been there. And sacrificed yourself to save me."

We sat in silence as I thought about what this meant. That I had been willing to die for him... sure, he was my pharaoh, who was, for all practical purposes (as far as ancient Egyptian society was concerned) a god on earth. But somehow, I didn't think that was the reason I had died for him. Even if he hadn't been the Pharaoh Atem, even if he had no social standings whatsoever, I would have still died for him. Yami was watching me with sad eyes, eyes that showed the years of mourning he had endured.

"Yami..." I wasn't sure what to say to him. I mean, it isn't like this kind of thing happens all the time, so what are you supposed to say to that?

"I'm sorry, Seto... I should have been more careful. I understand if you blame me..." What?! No!!

"That's ridiculous! Of course I don't blame you! I didn't have to save you, you know. You should know that I wouldn't sacrifice my life for just anyone." He looked a little more hopeful. "I was just curious, though... how is it that we're here? I mean, that we're both here in Domino, reincarnated at the same time?" He smiled at me sadly.

"I... Well, I'm sure you saw how upset I was when you were... when... yeah."

"You said that you didn't want to have to live without me..." He nodded. "Don't tell me that you..." He wouldn't do that, would he?

"No, I didn't kill myself... not really, anyway. I went to the order of priests who lived away from the city, the ones who specialized in the afterlife and reincarnation. They told me that there was nothing they could do to bring you back, as I had suspected, but they could make sure that somewhere, someday, we could be together again." He laughed bitterly. "It sounds like I'm telling a fucking fairy tale," he mused.

"Yeah, a fairy tale with explicit homosexuality, murder, and the occult." I was pleased when he smiled at that, shrugging.

"But anyway, I went to them, and they said there was a way. It would be difficult, and they would require generous payment. Needless to say, I gave them all that they wanted, and then some. One of them crafted a vessel for my soul: this thing." He held up the millennium puzzle, which was sitting on the bedside table. "They didn't want just anyone to be able to put it together, so they designed it to be unsolvable. The puzzle would be able to sense the presence of your spirit, and would seek out the one that could solve it. That was Yugi. Somehow, I don't think it's a coincidence that he looks so similar to me. They didn't give me all the exact details; I didn't really care how it worked, just as long as it got me to you. So I gave up my body... to everyone else, it looked as if I had died; I believe the cause of death was deemed 'a broken heart.' Which it was, in a way. I was no longer among the living. On the other hand, though, I wasn't dead. I was in the puzzle, waiting for so many years until Yugi's grandfather found it. Oh, don't make that face, Seto. If it weren't for him, I would still be waiting in the dark in a tomb in Egypt." Hm... maybe the old man wasn't so bad after all.

"Were you aware the whole time you were waiting? For three thousand years?" That would be unbearable...

"Partially... as you can imagine, I couldn't remain fully conscious without going totally mad, so I would lay dormant, in a way. It wasn't any way to exist. All I could do was wait and hope, and dream about the day I would see you again. And the memories... I had the good memories, but more vivid, were those last few minutes of your life, as you lay dying before my eyes-" He broke off, unable to continue.

"Yami, look at me. Look at me, please." He reluctantly obeyed, and I saw that he was in tears. "Yami, I'm sorry. I didn't remember you, and I was... a total ass." He looked at me with surprise.

"You? Acting like an ass? Noooo..." Okay, Mr. Sarcastic. "But yeah, it was hard. I had been waiting so long, and then... nothing. I started to distance myself from everyone. Even Yugi, who understood what was going on and tried to help me... I pushed everyone away. Yugi didn't know how to help me, and no one else noticed... until you did. When you talked to me that day, I saw flickers of my Seth, and I tried so hard to convince myself that I was imagining it, to not get my hopes up... I couldn't help it."

"But I remember, at least a little now. So you have me again." He smiled brightly.

"I know... I'm so happy. I love you."

"I love you too. And I really am sorry about dying on you like that..." He laughed through his tears.

"You should be sorry. I never gave you permission to die." I kissed his cheek softly, then pulled the covers back, getting to my feet. "Where are you going?" He sounded so concerned...

"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. I just think that we should get cleaned up before Mokuba gets here... who knows who else he'll drag along with him." Yami winced slightly at the thought, and I couldn't blame him. It wasn't exactly an appealing thought, getting caught naked by the mutt, or anyone else... "Wait a minute. So Bakura... creepy white-haired cynical Bakura... He killed me?" Yami nodded.

"Yeah. You see why I hate him? He wasn't actually trying to kill you; he actually wanted to keep you, after he'd killed me." That bastard! I'd kill him when I saw him next, see how he likes it. "But don't do anything drastic to him, Seto. Please, that would upset Yugi and Mokuba." Shit. He was right.

"Fine, I won't kill him... yet. Now let's go get a shower." Yugi tried for a moment to stand, but fell back to the bed with a moan of pain. "I'm sorry..." I gave him my most apologetic look, and he stuck his tongue at me.

"Get over here and help me." I carried him to the shower, and we took a bath... and partook in other activities, but we won't go into that too much right now. Once we were clean (again), we dressed and went downstairs... to find the entire group hanging out in _**my **_house. What the fuck? I didn't want them anywhere near me, least of all in my house. Mokuba gave me his puppy-dog eyes, but I ignored him to the best of my ability. Until he began looking pointedly back and forth between Yami and me. Then I gave him the "Kaiba" glare, and he shrugged, rolling his eyes at me. I really needed to start being more strict with him...

"Hello, everyone," Yami greeted them, blushing furiously.

"Hey, you two. What're you guys up to?" Yugi called, emphasizing his words. That little brat... God. This was why they pissed me off so much! They were so annoying! While I was fuming, Bakura had snuck up next to me without me noticing. That was the thing about all of the yamis; they could do that kind of thing easily. It was creepy.

"Hello there, priest. Enjoying being reunited with your pharaoh?" No, don't kill him, don't kill him, don't- oh, fuck it. I grabbed the front of his shirt, slamming him against the wall. Ryou jumped up, running over to his yami as if he could do anything to help. "What's the matter, priest?" Bakura was grinning at me with that reckless, dangerous smirk that he had- frankly, it was terrifying. But that was beside the point; I was too angry to be afraid. There was a cacophony of voices, barely registering in my head.

"Kaiba, what're you doing?" (Yugi)

"Jesus Christ! What the fuck, man?" (The mutt)

"What in the bloody hell is going on?" (Ryou, of course.)

"Seto, please!" That one got through to me. I dropped Bakura, turning to Yami apologetically.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, so that only Yami could hear.

"Kaiba, what _was_ that for?" I turned to glare at the shrimp.

"For one thing, midget, don't end your sentence with a preposition. To answer your poorly-worded question, I was _going _to kill him; it's only fair that I return the favor, of course." There was about thirty seconds of silence, me panting and glaring at the thief, him baring his teeth at me in something that couldn't be called a smile.

"What do you mean?" Yugi had guts, I'll give him that. Most people wouldn't draw my attention to them while I was angry.

"I mean that he fucking killed me. In Egypt." Bakura let out a sharp laugh.

"So the priest remembers! What did you do to jog his memory, Pharaoh?" Yami was looking at the ground, his cheeks burning. I put my arm around him; my action was met with gasps. What? Hadn't Mokuba told them?

"What the fuck is goin' on here?" As always, the mutt was less than articulate. Yugi, however, looked absolutely overjoyed at the circumstances. Maybe he wasn't so bad...

"Yeah, didn't you know? The priest and the pharaoh were lovers."

"And you killed me!"

"I wasn't trying to kill you, and you know it. It was your own damn fault."

"So I was supposed to let you kill him?!"

"It's the only logical thing to do. Only a fool would give up his life to another willingly." Did he just call me a fool? That was not okay with me.

"Wait... who's the priest?" Stupid mutt!!!

"Dude, Kaiba's the priest. Obviously," muttered the pointy-headed buffoon. The mutt turned to Bakura.

"So you killed Kaiba?" Bakura nodded smugly, and the mutt broke into a grin. "Way to go, man!"

"Jou!!!" Yugi shouted, trying and failing to be intimidating, his short stature taking away from the menacing tone.

"Sorry, Yuge." He looked like he was thinking (careful, mutt), and then scratched his head. "Wait... so does this mean that you two..." Realization dawned upon his face. "Oh! Man, Yami. You got shit taste in guys, you know that?" That little-

"No I don't, and I would appreciate if you would at least try to be nice to him... thank you." He still hadn't looked at Bakura, who had wandered back over to us. Yami leaned closer to me, and I held him protectively close. Although I was keeping a wary eye on Bakura, I didn't miss the approving look that Yugi was giving me. I didn't give a shit what the midget thought, but if it made Yami happy...

"Bakura, what are you doing?" Ryou had noticed Bakura's behavior.

"Nothing, Ryou. Just chill." Ryou didn't look like he wanted to chill; he frowned at his yami, whose expression was anything but innocent. Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around Yami, attempting to yank him out of my grip. Yami let out a surprised cry, his expression panicked. I didn't even think about what I was doing as I leapt at the thief. I caught him around the waist, yanking on his hair until he dropped Yami, who fell to the floor. I shoved Bakura away from me, instantly by Yami's side.

"Yami! Are you okay?" I barely noticed the astounded looks that the others were giving each other (although Yugi was glaring daggers at Bakura). I knew that I was kind of ruining my douchebag reputation, but I didn't care right then. Yami, however, shook his head at me.

"I'm okay, Seto. Thanks. Bakura, what the fuck was that?" Bakura shrugged.

"Just curious. I wanted to see how the priest would react. I wasn't going to _actually_ do anything to you... probably. I can't promise anything next time." That bastard! I pulled Yami to his feet, holding him close to my body.

"There won't be a next time, you crazy son of a bitch. Now please, get out of my house." Yami looked hurt, so I clarified. "Alright, Yugi and obviously Mokuba can stay if they want to, but the rest of you... out. Now." The blond moron started to complain, but what's-his-name Honda shut him up and dragged him out the door. Once Ryou coaxed a grinning Bakura (and when I say 'grinning,' I mean showing his teeth in a disturbingly gleeful and totally insane manner) out of the house with promises of God only knows what, I let out a deep sigh. Yami looked up at me, concerned.

"Are you okay?" I nodded, and then kissed him. I broke away from it when I remembered that Yugi and Mokuba were in the room, but they didn't look like they were bothered by it at all. "Aibou?" Yami called to Yugi, using another weird nickname. "You don't- you don't mind, do you?" Yugi rolled his eyes.

"Yami, you know the answer to that, or at least you should. I'm so happy that you're happy." Yami smiled, and I could tell that he was relieved; it had been worrying him. Yugi glanced at me, raising an eyebrow; he had something he wanted to say to me. I turned to Yami, kissing his forehead.

"Mokuba, why don't you go and get Yami something to eat? I need to ask Yugi something... don't give me that look. I'm going to be nice." He kissed me again softly, then followed my brother into the other room. "You wanted to speak with me?" Yugi nodded, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Kaiba, I'm not accusing you of anything, but I just want to make sure... you're not just fucking with him, are you?" It was a serious question, but I couldn't pass up the chance.

"That depends on which sense of the word you mean..." His face was priceless.

"W-wha- I-"

"Sorry, I couldn't help it. But no. I'm not just messing with him. I wouldn't do that to him."

"Good. I'm glad. Because we shared a body long enough, and at night, we shared enough dreams, that I... I know how much you mean to him, and I remember how... awful your death was." He shuddered. "I experienced it from Yami's perspective, and I swear by the gods that if you hurt him, you will regret it."

"I already regret hurting him once. It wasn't intentional, of course, but..." I broke off, and the following silence was thoroughly awkward. Okaaaay...

"Well, good. We'd better go find them, before Mokuba gets into the sweets." I groaned. Yugi knew my brother well.

"Yeah, let's go." We were too late; Mokuba had already consumed about a half a carton of sherbet, and Yami had apparently discovered it as well. I have to admit, we had fun. Even with the twerp there. When Yugi was about to leave, he turned to Yami.

"Are you coming with me, or should I just leave you here?" Yami was taken aback, stuttering for a moment. "You know what? Never mind. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Have fun!" Yami stared after him, still grasping for words.

"I think he just gave you his blessing," Mokuba commented, before wandering off to play video games or something pointless like that.

"Well, that was interesting..." I muttered, Yami nodding his agreement. He stretched and yawned. "Hey, didn't you get enough sleep earlier?" He glared at me.

"Well, excuse me, please. It was a very strenuous day, you know." He smirked playfully.

"Yes, I know... very strenuous. Very much so."

"You guys, that's disgusting!" Mokuba shouted from the other room.

"You need to mind your own damn business!" I shouted back, making Mokuba laugh. "Would you care to join me?" I asked Yami, holding out my hand for him.

"I would. Besides, you're not going anywhere without me."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

* * *

_In the final curtain call  
You left me here with the coldest of feelings  
Weight, kind, depression  
Blessing the floor with the places you've stepped in.

* * *

_A/N: Hey, the song for this was The Willing Well IV: The Final Cut. It's a short song, and the rest of it doesn't go with this story at all, but I liked that part, and I thought it worked really well. Sooooo tell me what you think!

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

~alex~


	6. Chapter 6: Always And Never

(I own nothing)

* * *

~Chapter Six: Always and Never~

* * *

_With this I would share with you  
All of this count to no end

* * *

_

After Yugi left, I had some work to finish, but Yami assured me that he would be fine playing some game with Mokuba. I had to keep myself focused on the computer rather than Yami's face. Sure, he was much more interesting than all those stupid numbers, but my stocks were down by two points, and I didn't want them to fall any lower. Even so, I kept getting distracted. After all, it isn't every day that you have a three thousand-year-old former pharaoh sitting in your living room, playing video games with your sixteen-year-old brother. That kind of stuff just doesn't happen.

"Seto?" Yami called softly when Mokuba left to get a snack. "When are you going to be done with that?" I sighed, rubbing my temples. I could already feel a headache coming on...

"I'm sorry, Yami. I know this isn't very much fun for you... not too long. An hour or two?" He nodded.

"Ok. No, don't worry about me. I'm fine. I just wondered..." I smiled at him, and he returned it shyly. Damn, he was adorable...

A little while later, I noticed that I had a new inbox message from an unknown sender. Probably just spam, but I opened it just in case (no need to worry about viruses: behold the beauty of the Mac). My heart just about stopped when I saw what it contained.

"_Dearest Seto, how have you been? Have you been missing me, as I have been missing you? Probably not, judging by what you've done to my company. After everything I sacrificed, after everything I did for you and your brother- no, I've not forgotten him- after everything I gave you, this is how you repay me? By ruining everything for which I had worked? Seto, Seto, Seto. Surely you know better than that. Surely you remember the punishment for such blatant disobedience. I'm giving you this one chance to comply with my wishes. You know my terms; my associate has already contacted you, I believe. You have ten days, starting now. If you do as I ask, then I am willing to settle for just you. If you do not follow my requests, however, I _will_ have Mokuba. You know that you can't keep him safe from me. Think it over. I look forward to our meeting. We have so much to discuss, and it has been so dreadfully long since we have seen each other. Sincerely, Gozaburo. _

_P.S. You'd better keep a close eye on that attractive new toy of yours; he would make a wonderful asset to my collection."_

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck! He couldn't hurt Yami... but I knew that he could, and would hurt him, in horrible ways. That bastard! Gods, it was bad enough that he was threatening Mokuba, now he was threatening Yami? And the way he said that he would be willing to settle for me... I knew what that meant with him, and I didn't even want to think about it. I couldn't let that happen to Mokuba or Yami. Even worse than the contents of the letter, though, were the photos. There was one of Mokuba, walking with his friends, Mokuba, at school... and then there was Yami, at the game shop, in his work uniform. There was one of Yami and me talking... My heart was racing with the implications. I felt a pair of arms snake around my neck from behind, and I hurriedly snapped the computer shut.

"Seto, I already saw it."

"Yami, I don't know what to do. He... he's watching us. He wants us to know that he can hurt us easily. Yami, I'm sorry. I've brought you into this... he always did want Mokuba, but if I hadn't brought his attention to you, you would be safe-" He kissed me aggressively.

"Hush. This isn't your fault." The words sounded nice, but he was wrong. "We'll figure something out. He won't get either Mokuba or me. Or you, for that matter. It will be okay." I smiled humorlessly.

"Thank you, Yami, but you don't know Gozaburo like I do." Well, no one did, but that was beside the point, and better forgotten for now. "You don't know the sick, twisted, horrible shit of which he is capable. Did you read that last part? He wants you, Yami. He collects people. The more beautiful and exotic looking, the better. He uses them for all manner of horrific things, although mainly for his own pleasure, and that of his associates. He _wants_ you, Yami... I don't know. When he wants something or someone, he always, _always_ gets it. Always." I was shaking. Yami looked slightly paler, but still hugged me reassuringly. "Yami, I don't want him to get either of you. He would do... unspeakable things."

"Seto, you beat him once before; you can beat him again." I shook my head.

"Yeah, but that was before, when he got overconfident. Everything was right there, practically begging me to seize it from him. Now... now, we don't know where he is; we have nothing to use against him. We have nothing with which to work."

"Seto, it might not even be him! It could just be someone trying to scare you into giving them everything." Oh, how I wished that were the case.

"This email. It sounds just like him, Yami. It has to be him." I covered my eyes with one hand.

"Or it could be someone who knew him. Is there anyone close enough to him who would do this?" I thought about that. Yeah, it was possible alright.

"Well yeah, there were three or four guys he trusted enough to call friends. But even if it is one of them, we're still fucked. There was a reason they got on so well with the bastard; they were just like him. Worse, even, just not as intelligent." I shuddered again at the thought... gods, I hated those men.

"Seto?" Yami whispered, coming around the front of the chair to sit on my lap and look into my eyes. "What happened?" Shit. I should have known he would pick up on my discomfort, and of course he would ask about it. He really didn't need to know this, though. Not yet.

"Nothing. They're just evil." He totally didn't believe me, but he let it drop. Thank you, Yami.

"Well then. We need to warn Mokuba to be on the lookout for anything suspicious... I know you don't want to scare him, but he needs to know that this is dangerous. Oh!" His eyes widened in panic. "I have to call Yugi! He looks so much like me..."

"Dammit. You're right... Up close, you don't look so identical, but from a distance... shit. Go call him, now. Just give him a quick rundown, and tell him that," I swallowed, preparing to take a great hit to my pride. "Tell him that I'm sorry for getting him involved in this." Yami stared at me, as if I had just told him something totally earth-shattering. Well, Seto Kaiba apologizing to Yugi Mutou, of his own free will, is sort of earth-shattering. "Go," I pushed him off of my lap. "I'll see what I can do. I have quite a few connections." He nodded, going to find his phone. Probably still on the bedside table... I opened the computer again, not entirely sure where to start. I sent out a few vague emails to people who owed me favors, before smacking myself in the forehead. Duh, Seto. I pulled out my phone, dialing my secretary's cell. Yeah, it was a Saturday. So the fuck what.

"Hello?" She sounded surprised, worried, and confused all at once.

"Shelly. That man... you know the one?"

"Yes."

"I need any and all information you have on him. No matter how trivial it might seem, any little bit is important."

"Very well. Give me a moment, and I can get it to you via email." This was why I had kept her employed as long as I had. She was the best secretary I could have found, and she really wasn't that irritating, as far as people go. Less than two minutes later, the email popped up. I opened it... and was astounded with what I found.

"Jesus, Shelly. Remind me to make it up to you," I mused, scrolling through it.

"So... It's okay?" She didn't sound scared, like most of my employees would have.

"More than that. Just... shit, Shelly." I explained (briefly) the situation. She was silent for a moment after I had finished.

"Huh... well. I'm a secretary, not a miracle worker!" I said nothing. "Star Trek reference... never mind. I really don't know what to tell you..." I sighed heavily.

"I know. I just... ugh."

"Hey, you needed to vent. It's alright. But try looking through that info I sent you. I don't know if it will be of any help, but hopefully you can find something. Do you have any other ideas? Of people who could possibly be involved?" I gave her the names of Gozaburo's friends. "Alright. I'll see what I can find on these guys. Is it alright if I call you if I find anything?" Shit, I needed to give this lady a raise.

"Yes, please do. Thank you, Shelly. I really appreciate it."

"Woah, you must really be worried about this. Are you okay?" I could tell she was teasing me, but I wasn't exactly sure about what.

"Um..."

"You thanked me. Very nicely, I might add, and without yelling at anyone."

"Hey, I'm not that bad, am I?"

"You totally are, and you know it." yeah, she was right.

"Whatever. But I'm serious, I do appreciate it."

"Hey, it's good. You really aren't that bad of a person, despite what you would have everyone believe, and Mokuba is a good kid. Besides, I know how bad he can be." That's right; she had spent at least a little bit of her childhood around Gozaburo. The whole reason she got the job as secretary is because her mother was one of Gozaburo's live-in maids. She was always very kind to me, and took care of me. When I came to own the company, I repaid her kindness by giving her a very generous retirement package, and by employing her daughter. One of the best choices I've ever made. "If he's still alive and threatening you, then I'm going to have to help you take the bastard out." Wait... She said that she knew how bad he could be, which led me to wonder just how much she knew.

"So... how much _do_ you know?" I was met with silence for a few moments.

"I know... enough." I could tell by her voice what she meant, which is what I had feared. "But don't worry about it. I'm going to see what I can find, and you are going to go rest. You need it." I laughed.

"Wait, who's the boss here?"

"You know, sometimes I wonder. But really, though. Where would you be without me? Probably passed out somewhere from exhaustion. Now go rest!" I thanked her again before hanging up. Rest? Who needs it? Not I, as long as we have coffee in the house. I began browsing the information she'd sent me, but there was nothing in particular about this guy that raised any red flags. Sure, he had a criminal record- petty theft, tax evasion, the like. That was pretty common among the less successful businessmen. Unlike myself, of course. I don't get caught doing illegal things. And even if I were to, I have enough influence that I could get out of it easily enough. Basically, this guy was your typical, run-of-the-mill sleazeball, probably picked up somewhere and hired for a small sum by someone much more intelligent and powerful. I sighed as I powered off the computer.

"No luck?" I jumped slightly at Yami's voice; I hadn't heard him walk in. I shook my head, rubbing my eyes.

"No, not really. My secretary is working on getting more information on some of Gozaburo's old colleagues. She says she'll call if she gets anything."

"Well, that's good. Right?"

"Yeah, but it's not enough. Every minute is important. But what about Yugi? Did you talk to him?" Yami nodded.

"Yeah, and he's going to be staying with Ryou and Bakura until this blows over." I didn't miss the bitter look on his face. "Which is actually a good place for him to be, despite the fact that I despise the thief. For whatever reason, he seems to be quite fond of Yugi." He still looked less than pleased. "He'll be safe there, that's for sure." He smiled bitterly.

"Hmmm... I'd like to see anyone try anything with Bakura there." Yami actually laughed at that one.

"Ha! They wouldn't know what hit them." The image was actually pretty scary. Not only was Bakura strong, but he was ruthless (not to mention insane). "Especially if he had Marik with him."

"Is Marik strong?" Marik had to be pretty tough, to hang out with Bakura as often as he did, without getting killed or at least severely injured.

"Yeah... he's kind of a special case."

"Aren't you all?" Hey, I couldn't resist. Yami punched me lightly in the arm.

"Hey, quit interrupting! But anyway, yes. He is strong. His shadow magic is at least as strong as that of Bakura or myself, not to mention that he wields the millennium rod. It isn't necessarily stronger than the ring or the puzzle, but it grants the power of mind control." That was pretty intense. Maybe... A thought crossed my mind.

"Hey, Yami... If you used the rod to control someone, could you make them spill their secrets? Like oh, say... for whom they work?" Yami's eyes grew even bigger than Yugi's (that's saying something).

"Seto," he said, taking my face between his hands and kissing me. "You are a genius. I think that might work! I'm not sure; I'd have to talk to Marik, but I think it allows access to their thoughts!" He looked so happy right then. He was beaming, and his eyes showed no trace of the sadness that usually haunted them. "See? I told you we would think of something!" I allowed myself a smile. I had been smiling a hell of a lot more lately; I blame Yami.

"So we'll talk to Marik tomorrow? It's a little late now." It had gotten to be almost one in the morning without me even realizing it. Wait... so I had called Shelly at twelve thirty, and she'd actually answered my phone, been civil to me, and made such an effort to help me? She was getting a fucking _huge_ raise. As if right on cue, Yami yawned. "Ready for bed, then?" He made a pouty face.

"Not really. I didn't get to see you that much tonight..."

"Yami, I'm sorry. I had to-" He put a finger to my lips.

"No, no. It's perfectly alright... although I am fully expecting you to make it up to me." Wait, did he mean tonight? As in... he raised an eyebrow at me.

"I suppose that could be arranged," I mused, flipping through my pocket calendar. "Yes, it looks like I have an opening tonight. I could fit you in, if it works for you." He smirked evilly.

"Actually, I'm pretty sure you will be the one fitting in, but yes. It definitely works." Gah! hat wasn't what I had meant! I mean, ugh. I could feel the heat radiating from my face. "You're cute when you're embarrassed, you know that?"

"I am not embarrassed!" I snapped, only serving to make his smile wider. Grr. This is why he had always annoyed me before! Too damn clever for his own good. Well, I couldn't have him getting the upper hand, now could I? Which is why I stood, slinging his slim body over my shoulder. He struggled weakly, laughing and kicking his legs. Just as I was carrying him down the hall to my room, Mokuba stepped out of his room, headed for the bathroom. He stopped dead in his tracks, staring as Yami flailed around in my grasp.

"You know what, big brother?" he asked, yawning. "I'm not even going to ask. Why? Because I really, really don't want to know."

"Hey!" I protested. "We haven't done anything!"

"Yet," Yami muttered, and Mokuba shook his head.

"Gah. You know, I'm scarred for life? I'll need years of therapy to get over this. Now please, try not to be too loud. I would like to sleep, and I don't want to end up having weird dreams because of you two."

"Fine, fine. Good night, Mokuba. Sleep well."

"You too, Yami, Seto."

"Doubtful," Yami whispered, loudly enough for us to hear. Mokuba groaned, sticking his tongue out at Yami before continuing on his way.

"Well that was awkward," I commented, "Thanks almost entirely to some pharaoh's-I gently jostled Yami- perverted comments."

"Hey, I was just telling the truth. Now hurry up, I'm sick of being carried." For that, I moved even more slowly, until he finally started kicking me. What am I, a horse? I think not.

"Wow, Yami," I said, faking a yawn and stretching as I deposited him on the bed. "I'm really tired. I think I'll just go to sleep now." His expression was priceless, but he allowed me to don my pajamas. I found him a pair that fit him well enough (we're both freakishly tall and thin), and as soon as he'd changed into them, leaped on me, pinning me beneath him. "Oh, hello there." He kissed me passionately, almost attacking me in his fervor. I wanted to tease him some more, but apparently my willpower isn't that strong. Within a few moments, I was returning the hungry kisses, my hands beginning to roam around his body. I slipped a hand up his shirt, pushing the material away from his tanned skin. I began trailing kisses down his throat to his chest and stomach, gently licking and nipping in places, making him moan. It was pretty amusing how easy it was to tease him. All I had to do was stop for a moment, and he would whine pathetically.

"Seto, I love you," He whispered into my ear, and I knew that he'd had enough messing around.

"Hey. I love you too. What a coincidence!" I whispered softly to him while our touches wandered lower, and I tried to distract him while I prepared him for me. Even so, he still cried out quietly in pain when I pushed in. "Shh," I whispered, kissing the side of his neck gently. "I'm sorry. It's okay..." When the pained look was replaced by an equally flustered but happier look, I began thrusting softly, finally hitting that one spot that made him cry out loudly. I continued in that way, aiming for that spot again and again until he couldn't take it any more. He cried out again when he came, clutching my back so tightly that his knuckles turned white and his hands shook. After a few more thrusts, I, too, climaxed, and we lay on the bed, him nestled in my arms, my face buried in his neck.

"Do you want to get cleaned up?" He asked sleepily a few minutes later. I looked at him, raising an eyebrow.

"Do you want to move?"

"No," he shook his head, grinning sheepishly at me. "Not really."

"Good. Because neither do I." He smiled even more widely, burying his face in my chest and hugging me tightly.

"I love you, Seto."

"I love you too, Yami. Now good night."

* * *

_Stay with me and fall asleep  
Pray to God for no bad dreams_

Here... I'm still waiting here, my dear  
For one kiss from you  
So here... I'm still waiting here, my dear

* * *

A/N: Okay, so that was one of the weirder things that's happened to me on this site... I uploaded my document, and I was scrolling through, and I realized that for whatever reason, the site had deleted half of the quotation marks, some of the words directly after quotation marks, and inexplicably turned random letters into Japanese. What's that all about?! I think I got all of them fixed, but there might be some that I missed here and there, so I apologize for those.

~many thanks to soundofmadness223. Today (2/23) is her birthday!!! so you should go and wish her a happy birthday!!!~

Um... I really have nothing else to say, other than I'm sorry that it took me so long to update. I thought I had already posted this chapter... heh. urgh, I hate posting lemons. it makes me feel guilty, for whatever reason. *blush blush blush*

So let me know what you think, because I love getting reviews!!! thank you!!!

~alex~


	7. Chapter 7: Radio Bye Bye

(I don't own anything.)

* * *

~Chapter Seven: Radio Bye Bye~

* * *

"Seto, wake up. Hello in there... anyone home?" I opened my eyes groggily, fully intending on brutally slaughtering whoever it was who had dared to disturb my slumber. Until I saw who it was, of course.

"What do you want?" I mumbled, trying to turn over and go back to sleep.

"Look. Do you want to talk to Marik today, or not?" Yami prodded me in the ribs, and I glared at him. My glares didn't seem to work on him... I would have to do something about that.

"Maybe. I want to sleep." When was the last time I'd actually really gotten a full night's sleep? I don't know. Yami made a point of picking up his phone and looking at the time.

"Well, you know it's almost eleven?" What?!

"How the fuck did that happen? Why didn't you wake me sooner?" He rolled his eyes at me, and I knew that I was being kind of ridiculous.

"Because you needed your sleep, you moron." I raised an eyebrow at him. He and Mokuba (and _possibly_ Shelly) were the only people who could call me a moron and escape without great bodily harm. "Plus, you would have bitten my head off. I saw that look you gave me when I woke you up."

"True enough... but I wouldn't have killed you, not completely. That would just totally ruin everything." He laughed at me, tugging on my hand to pull me out of bed. I saw that he was already fully dressed. "How long have you been awake?"

"A few hours. Now hurry up and get dressed." I'm not usually in the habit of taking orders, but I obeyed, joining him in the kitchen... where I found breakfast already laid out for me.

"Did you make this?" I asked him in awe. He blushed bright red.

"Maybe," he mumbled, clearly embarrassed. I put an arm around his waist, pulling him close so that I could kiss his cheek.

"You will make a great wife," I told him jokingly. He shoved me away from him. Well, I kind of deserved it.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Just that you'd probably look nice in an apron." I had to duck when he tried halfheartedly to smack me, and then I caught his arm and pinned him against the counter.

"That's not fair."

"Why not? You're the almighty pharaoh." He glared at me. We were interrupted by a soft clearing of the throat.

"Why the hell does this always happen? I don't want to see this!" Mokuba threw his hands up in the air, and I let go of Yami.

"Sorry, Mokuba. Did you eat yet?" He nodded at me.

"Yeah, while you were in there sleeping the day away." Suddenly, a heavy weight landed on my back, a pair of arms wrapping around my neck and practically choking the life out of me.

"That's because it was a very strenuous night," Yami said as I fought against his overly-enthusiastic embrace. "He didn't get too much sleep, and I think he might have over exerted himself." The look on my brother's face was hysterical.

"Gah! Like I said! I don't want to know!!" he shouted, before running out of the room.

"Well, now that you've finished emotionally scarring my brother, maybe we should eat breakfast."

"More like brunch. And I've already eaten." I feigned hurt.

"What, you didn't wait for me?" He shrugged nonchalantly.

"Sorry. I had to eat, because I had to take my meds." Wait, what?

"What meds?"

"Well, since I just recently got my own body, I'm always kind of low on essential nutrients. I take vitamins and calcium supplements, which I have to have food with, or else... bad things happen to my stomach." Made sense... "And then... um... I have others, too. But they're just kind of generic. Or whatever." He was starting to get flustered, so I dropped the subject. If he didn't want to tell me everything, then he had a right to have some privacy. After all, God knows I hadn't told him everything about me...

The breakfast was wonderful. I never would have thought that waffles could taste so good, but Yami was, apparently, some sort of waffle magician (which would be a great name for a rock band, by the way).

"Well then. Are you ready to brave the Ishtar household?"

"Not really, but it has to be done. Let's take something less conspicuous than the limo," I suggested. "Just in case."

We ended up taking a normal-looking, boring Subaru, but that was okay. We didn't want to attract unnecessary attention. Yami directed me where to go, and we stopped outside a small house on the outskirts of the city. We walked up to the door, and just as we were about to knock, the door opened.

"Hello," Isis greeted us. "I've been expecting you." I rolled my eyes. This stupid woman and her seeing the future shit... she was very annoying. Yami, however, was very polite to her, greeting her for the both of us. I was too busy glaring at her. For whatever reason, she just really pissed me off. It was kind of one of those things where there's someone who isn't actually _that_ horrible, but you just hate their guts with no reason to. Well, I hate lots of people, but you know what I mean.

"Goddammit, Marik! Give it back!!" The sounds of a squabble reached us, and the woman rolled her eyes, leading us to the other room, where Marik was busy dangling an iPod above Malik's head. Malik was jumping up and down to get it, but Marik wouldn't give it to him, until Malik smashed into the larger yami.

"Ouch, Malik!" Marik glared at his hikari.

"It's your fault! You wouldn't give it back!"

"It's technically your fault, since I wouldn't exist if it weren't for you." Malik wasn't really sure what to say to that, and without warning, Marik swooped in, wrapping his arms around the confused blonde and kissing him very enthusiastically.

"But I'm glad you exist..." I looked at Yami, who was just shaking his head.

"Aren't they kind of... brothers?" I whispered.

"Not really... they aren't technically related, they just happen to look remarkably alike. Just like the thief and his hikari."

"Okay, then... Wait. Bakura and Ryou?" Yami nodded. That wasn't good... how come the other two yamis were with their hikaris? Not in a friendly way, either. It seemed odd that Yami and Yugi wouldn't be together. After all, they knew the other better than anyone in the world.

"Seto? What's wrong?" His eyes were so full of concern that I knew that I was being stupid. I shook my head. Why was I getting jealous over something so ridiculous?

"Nothing. Just thinking."

"Marik, Malik, please. We have visitors," Isis announced, silencing the two violet-eyed Egyptians. They were kind of weird-looking. Not that Yami was normal-looking, by any stretch of the imagination, but it was different with him.

"Why is the priest here?" Marik hissed, looking at me suspiciously.

"Oh. Uh, hi Yami, Kaiba," Malik greeted us, giving his overly-hostile yami a sharp look. "Marik, be nice for once!" Marik shrugged like he couldn't be bothered. Apparently, he couldn't be bothered to put on a shirt, either, although to be perfectly honest, I think he just likes showing off his decorated back. Which I'll admit, is impressive, but I swear, he never has a shirt on. As if to prove my point, he turned so that he was facing away from us, stood there for a moment, and started to walk out of the room.

"Marik, we wish to speak with you," Yami called softly. He stopped, but didn't turn around.

"What do you want?" he snapped. Isis still stood there silently, watching everything with those freaky eyes of hers. I glared at her, and she made eye contact with me, which she held for almost a minute. That minute... was one of the weirder minutes of my life, which is saying something. It was her and her eyes that did it; the way she stared at me made me feel like I had no secrets from her (which was ridiculous; I'd met her about two times previously), and like she had something that she was trying to tell me. I didn't know what the fuck she was trying to do, but she lowered her gaze after a moment.

"Seto," she said, her voice low. I didn't appreciate her using my first name.

"What?" I snapped. Marik, Malik, and Yami stared at us.

"May I have a word with you? Privately?"

"No." Isis turned to look pointedly at the other three.

"Please, leave us." Yami looked at me with concern, but I waved at him to reassure him, and the three went into the other room, closing the door behind them.

"Alright. What do you want?" I snapped at her. She just stared at me, not blinking. I was getting really sick of all this staring and shit. "What the hell did you want to say to me?"

"Only to warn you. Your pharaoh is in danger." Woah... that wasn't what I was expecting. Despite the fact that I wasn't inclined to believe her and her 'visions,' I felt my heart jump unpleasantly at her words. If she was saying that Yami was in danger, and there was even the _slightest_ possibility that she was right, then of course I was going to listen.

"What are you trying to say?" I demanded.

"Exactly what I just told you. The pharaoh is in immediate danger. I can see no specifics clearly at this time." She shook her head sadly, her eyes closed. "I fear that what I've seen will come to pass, rather than just being another of millions of possibilities that never come into existence." She opened her eyes, staring at me, studying my face carefully. Almost enough to make me nervous, but of course, the likes of her couldn't make me nervous. Not too nervous, at any rate.

"Why is he in danger?" I asked her, feeling slightly ridiculous about playing along with this stupidity, but at the same time, I feared her answer.

"I..." She shook her head again. "I am not able to see the circumstances, but you are there, as is the pharaoh's hikari. The pharaoh is injured badly.... the floor is tile, but beyond that, I do not recognize the setting." She watched me carefully. "I'm sorry," she said, for once sounding sincere. "I have no more information for you." Of course not. That would just be too fucking helpful, now wouldn't it? We can't have things actually being easy for once, now can we? Oh, no. That would break tradition! Okay, sorry about the rant there, but I needed it.

"Shit," I muttered angrily. "You could be wrong, right?" Ugh, I sounded so desperate and needy. She paused, her expression grim.

"Yes, it is possible..." She looked totally unconvinced. "But it is not likely. As I said before, there is something about this vision that rings true with me." She shook her head. "I am very sorry."

"Shit," I repeated, running a hand through my hair. Her eyes were still locked on to me, and it was really starting to piss me off. "What?" I snapped. "Why the fuck do you keep staring at me?"

"I apologize for my rudeness. It is just... I fear that you may be the source of the danger to the pharaoh." I had sort of suspected as much, but all the same, the words still felt like a blow to the stomach. She watched me sadly; although I tried to keep my face expressionless, I knew that she wasn't fooled. "You are the priest," she stated contemplatively. "Have you... regained any memory of your past life?"

"Yes, I have," I admitted, although the blood rushing to my face probably told her exactly what part of my past life I had remembered.

"And you and the pharaoh... have you resumed your-"

"Yes," I cut her off. "But I really don't see how that is important now."

"It may not be, but we cannot be sure. I wish to know as much as I can, in case it sheds further light on anything." Eh, it made sense, I guess. I knew that I had exposed Yami to danger already. Gozaburo wanted him, and that was never a good thing. But if Gozaburo wanted him, he wanted him alive. He wouldn't want to injure or kill him, or otherwise damage him. The way Isis was talking, though... it sounded much more serious than kidnapping.

"Isis..." She looked surprised that I had used her name, and in a polite manner at that. Well, lady, I was just as surprised as you. I still have no idea what possessed me to speak so cordially. "When you say that you see that he's in danger... what exactly is it that you see?" Her expression told me the answer, even before she spoke, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"His death..."

* * *

When we joined the others in the next room, I kept my expression bland, despite the fact that my brain was in complete turmoil. She had said that she'd seen his death rapidly approaching. How would I stop that from happening? I had to protect him, but how?

"...Seto? Hello, Seto..." I jumped slightly.

"Huh?" I hadn't even heard them talking to me, I'd been so preoccupied. Yami was looking into my face, concern evident in his features. "Sorry. What did I miss?"

"Well... Marik said that he'd be willing to help. He's the only one who can effectively use the rod, but if we need his help, we can just call him, and he'll do what he can. Did you really miss all of that?" I nodded absently.

"Well, that's good, right?" I asked. He nodded, still looking at me strangely. I shot him a look, trying to let him know that I would explain later. He dropped the subject, but judging by the looks that Marik was giving us, he knew that something was amiss. Or maybe not; it was possible that I was just being paranoid. But like I said, better to be too paranoid and stay safe than not paranoid enough, and to pay for it. I turned to the creepier of the two Ishtar guys, thanking him. "Thanks for this. Obviously, I wouldn't ask you this if it wasn't absolutely crucial." He nodded, shrugging.

"Eh, not a big deal. I'm so fucking bored all the time. They won't let me have any fun." He crossed his arms, glaring pointedly at Malik.

"Marik, your idea of fun involves murder and torture!" the smaller one shouted.

"Hey! Not always! I just like to mess with people. And I only kill them if they really deserve it." Malik raised an eyebrow, skepticism written all over his face.

"Oh really? And what about that one guy, huh? What did he do to deserve it?"

"Shut the fuck up, Malik. That was one time, and it was forever ago, when I was less awesome. Besides, just because I didn't have proof that he was a dick, it wasn't like he was a good person!" Shit, this was getting sort of heated, and it seemed like Marik was _not_ one that we wanted to piss off.

"He's right about that, Malik," Isis stepped in. Where had she come from? I hadn't even noticed that she was in the room. "I looked into it after the incident occurred, and, as Marik says, the man's soul was filled with evil. That man had done horrible things." Marik stuck his tongue out at Malik, and holy shit, did that guy have a long tongue. It wasn't natural. Of course, literally nothing about Marik is natural, so I don't know why I was so surprised.

"Nonetheless, Marik," Isis continued, turning her stern gaze to the yami. "I am aware that at the time, you knew none of this, so you cannot use the man's ill deeds to justify your actions." Marik then stuck his freakishly long tongue out at her, before turning back to Yami and me.

"Whatever. See you soon, I hope," he then addressed me. "Yeah, if you need any dirty work done, you know who to call," he then told me, smirking. As terrifying as it was, it could come in quite handy.

"I'll remember that," I promised, "And I'll let you know if anything comes up." He looked absolutely thrilled. Malik put his hands on his hips.

"You really shouldn't encourage him," he said, pouting. "Now I'll have to put up with him being all excited." Marik shoved him lightly.

"Hey! Don't act like you get all excited about it, too!"

"Yeah, well, that's only because of the mind link," Malik shot back. "If you weren't such a freak, I wouldn't even want to think about that kind of thing!" Marik smirked at his lighter half.

"Yes, my dear hikari, but if you weren't such a freak, I wouldn't even exist in the first place." Malik had no response to that, just opening and closing his mouth dumbly, like a fish for a few moments. Marik smiled sweetly at him for a moment, feigning innocence, before tackling him without warning, covering him with sloppy kisses.

"Okay, then. I think that's our cue to leave," I said to Yami, who nodded emphatically.

"Thank you, you guys..." They ignored him. "Goodbye, Isis," he said to the woman, smiling at her. She returned the smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Goodbye, Seto. Goodbye, Yami." We left, and as soon as we were in the car, Yami pounced on me.

"What did she talk to you about?" I sighed heavily, trying to think of how to put this.

"Can we wait to talk about it until we get back?" He pouted, but didn't argue. I was grateful, as I didn't want to try to drive while talking about something like that.

"Alright, now what was it?" he asked again, this time the second we stepped in the door. I took his hand and led him into the other room, where we reclined together on the sofa.

"Well... she told me about one of her visions or whatever." Yami nodded.

"I had kind of figured that. What did she say? You looked like you'd seen a ghost when you came out of the room." Damn, I thought I'd done a pretty good job of masking my emotions.

"Yami..." I closed my eyes, and I felt him tense up beside me.

"Was it really that bad?" he whispered. I nodded regretfully.

"Yes. She said that... that you were in danger. Immediate danger. Basically, she said that you're going to die soon, and it will be my fault for putting you in danger." He said nothing for almost a full minute, and I was starting to get nervous. "Yami?"

"Yes... did she say anything else?" His voice sounded weak.

"Um... there's a tile floor, and Yugi and I are there. That was all she could tell me."

"I see." He turned to me, his eyes full of an unfamiliar emotion. "Seto, do you think this has anything to do with Gozaburo?"

"Probably," I replied bitterly. That bastard had already screwed me over so many times... It hurt to think of him harming Yami in any way. "I'm sorry, Yami..." He shook his head, putting a finger over my lips.

"Shh. You might be putting me in danger, but it isn't your fault. I am choosing to stay with you, despite the dangers. Besides, not all visions come to pass. Even when they are the most likely outcome, one decision, one tiny act, can completely change the way things play out." I smiled at him weakly. Isis had said that this felt like a true vision, and most likely, Yami knew that. Whether he was trying to reassure me or himself, I wasn't sure.

"I hope you're right, Yami." I hugged him close to my body. "I don't want anything to happen to you." He smiled at me, kissing me softly on the cheek.

"I know, Seto. We'll just have to be extremely careful, and hopefully, nothing bad will happen." He then laughed. "That doesn't sound too reassuring, does it?"

"Not at all."

"Well, it's all we can do, for now."

"Or... as much as I hate to suggest this, you could join Yugi at Ryou's house... don't give me that look! I know how much you guys hate each other, but... he could keep you safe. Probably safer than I could." Yami glared daggers at me.

"Seto, there is no way in hell that I am going to stay under the same roof as the thief. Besides, if he can't keep me safe, I want the last person I see to be you, not that bastard." How could he say something like that so casually?!

"Yami! No! Don't talk like that!" He shrugged.

"I'm sorry. I do not like it either, obviously, but there is no point in pretending that it's not possible." Well, I guess he had a point, but still...

"I don't know what I'll do if he gets you," I whispered into his neck as I held him tightly. "I could never forgive myself. And he's already taken so much from me..." Yami rubbed my back gently.

"Seto... let's not worry about it right now. We can't do anything about it at the moment, so there is no point to being miserable about it right now."

"Alright," I sighed. "You're right." I kissed him, gently at first, then more forcefully as the day's stress sought to escape.

"Argh! Why! Why does this always happen?!"

"I really didn't need to see that..." Yami and I jumped up, our eyes wide. Mokuba and Yugi were standing in the doorway, Mokuba looking exasperated, and Yugi looking like he might be traumatized for life.

"Well if you'd quit barging in on things, you wouldn't have to see anything of the sort," I reprimanded my brother, who made gagging sounds before pulling Yugi out of the room behind him.

"Come on, Yugi. Let's get away before they start taking their clothes off." Yugi's eyes widened in horror, which almost made me laugh. I controlled myself, though, mainly so that Yami wouldn't get mad at me for laughing at his hikari.

"Oh no..." Yami's face was bright red. He looked mortified that Yugi had seen us, although we were only kissing. I'd hate to see his expression if Yugi saw us doing anything else. _Although_... it would be pretty funny...

"It's okay, Yami. We weren't even doing anything."

"I know, but still..." He shuddered and blushed even more brightly. He then hugged me tightly, stretching up to kiss me.

"Do you think we should tell Yugi? About what Isis said?" He paused, not answering for a moment.

"Well... He probably already knows that something is wrong. Like I said, he picks up on my emotions because of the mind link. I... I don't want him to worry too much. Let's wait..." I nodded, but he still looked concerned. I kissed him softly.

"Don't worry about it for right now. I'll do whatever I can to protect you, Yami. You know I will." He looked at me sadly.

"I know, Seto," he whispered. "That's what I'm afraid of..."

* * *

_We're throwing all caution to the wind.  
It's better to think about what's ahead, then behind them.  
Only I have got a better chance at failure.  
But my mind has a clever way of turning all the worst to right, I've found.  
Oh, no. So tell them like you did it. No maybes.

* * *

_A/N: Okay, what the hell?! it did the same thing with this chapter that it did with the last, with the quotation marks and the random kanji replacing certain letters, and deleting words in random places. I don't know why it's doing this. is it doing it to anyone else? Anyway, I apologize if I missed any of the errors, I'm sitting in the cafeteria right now.

The song for this chapter is "The End Complete II: Radio Bye Bye." I dunno, this quote seemed to fit okay, I thought.

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!!!


	8. Chapter 8: Time Consumer

(I own nothing.)

* * *

~Chapter Eight: Time Consumer~

* * *

_So they pulled your confidence down with those verbal discrepancies._  
_ Now and then you'll gain what they've lost through a challenge of unpronounced._  
_ Pain is only a pulse if you just stop feeling it._  
_ You might be able to use the very thing that makes us up._

* * *

"Seto? Seto! Where are you?"

"I'm in my study, Yami." He sounded frantic. "What's the matter?"

"Your phone has been ringing nonstop for the last half hour." I sighed heavily. I had tried to escape from the idiots who constantly feel the need to plague me with their stupidity by leaving my phone in the other room, but apparently, even that wasn't enough to deter the morons. "I think it's important..." I glanced at the display. Twenty-three missed calls within the last half hour? Yeah, this one might be important. As if on cue, it lit up and began vibrating again.

"What?" I snapped.'

"Seto, find Mokuba. Now. Make sure he's safe."

"Shelly, what's going on?"

"Don't argue with me, just fucking do it!" Okay, this was serious business.

"Yami, go get Mokuba. Bring him back here immediately. Please," I added as an afterthought. He hurried to find Mokuba. "Okay, Shelly. Now what is going on?"

"It's definitely him." She didn't need to specify who she meant.

"Shit... how do you know?"

"He contacted me on video conference, Seto. He knows that you asked me to look at his friends, and he knows what I've found. He's watching everything, Seto." Shit... this was bad. Bad, bad, bad.

"Okay, where are you?"

"Right now I'm at the corporation. I wanted to make sure that he hadn't broken in."

"Shelly, what the hell are you thinking?! You went by yourself?!"

"Yes."

"Fine. Make sure everything is locked up securely. I'll send Isono and some of his guys to make sure that it's secure. We'll be there in twenty minutes." I gave Isono a quick call, briefly explaining what had happened. As soon as Yami returned with a yawning Mokuba, I dragged them with me to one of the faster, but less noticeable, cars. Boring, but it wouldn't attract unwanted attention. My driving did, however, but the Domino city police know better than to try to ticket me, and we sped past the police cruiser with nothing worse than a disapproving look.

"Big brother?" Mokuba called from the back seat of the car. "What's going on?" I said nothing, gripping the steering wheel more tightly. Yami laid a hand on my shoulder.

"Seto?" I sighed.

"It's him," I muttered, defeat evident in my voice. "Shelly called me. He contacted her."

"Gozaburo?" Mokuba's voice held a tinge of fear. I nodded grimly, and there was silence for the rest of the ride. Gozaburo had never actually done anything to Mokuba, but he'd threatened plenty of times, and Mokuba had been witness to some things that no child his age should see. We got to the building, me letting us in through the back entrance. I was pretty pleased to see that Shelly had done a thorough job of barricading herself in the building. She was sitting at the desk, typing furiously, a handgun laying casually next to the keyboard. I suspected that she had another around here somewhere; she never was one to be unprepared.

"Hey," she called, glancing up briefly. "Come here." I could see that she wondered who Yami was, but there were more important issues at hand here.

"What is it?" On the screen an e-mail was displayed. I felt my stomach churn; this could only be from one person.

'Dearest Shelly- How have you been? Have you been keeping an eye on our Seto? It's your job, you know. I know what he asked you to do, but think long and hard before you help him out too much. Remember who is older, wiser, and more experienced. I will not lose. You were young at the time, but I know you remember what happened to those who displeased me. There's no way that Seto will be able to best me this time; I've learned from my mistakes. Before you go and show this to him, think about where your loyalties lie and what would be in your best interests. You're a smart girl and I'd hate for anything unsavory to befall you. I will contact you later in the day to get your answer. My best regards, Gozaburo.'

"That bastard!" I shouted, my temper getting the best of me. "How dare he threaten my employees?!" Yami, who until now had been hanging back with Mokuba, now approached me cautiously.

"Seto? What's going on?" Goddammit, Yami! Wasn't it pretty fucking obvious what was going on?

"What the fuck do you think? He's threatening her too, now, dammit!" I snapped at him, glaring heatedly. Sure, I was being unreasonable, but I needed to get my anger out somehow, and he was the closest one.

"Don't snap at me because you're angry at him and worried about everything!" I could see Shelly getting ready to step in, probably fearing for Yami's life, but it wasn't necessary. I sighed, running a hand through my hair in an attempt to calm my nerves and get a handle on my temper.

"Yeah, yeah. I know. I'm... sorry," I admitted. Shelly's jaw dropped in shock. "Shelly, this is Yami," I told her, putting my arm around a suddenly self-conscious Yami and pulling him close to my body.

"Oh... good to meet you, Yami. I'm Shelly, his secretary. So you two are...?" I nodded and she smiled. "Well then," she said, turning her full attention to Yami. "In that case, you need to make sure that he takes care of himself. Make him eat and sleep on a regular basis. Don't let him wear himself out too much, okay?" Yami nodded, smiling shyly.

"Don't worry. I fully intend on taking good care of him." I rolled my eyes, shoving him gently.

"Oh, please. Like I need you to take care of me." I scowled. "But seriously, Yami. You have to be careful. If he gets you..." Shelly's eyes widened in realization.

"Oh no, you two... don't tell me...?" I nodded.

"Yes. Not that it's a surprise, though. He likes beautiful people." I rubbed Yami's back gently, and Shelly shook her head, smiling softly. "Seto, you always manage to surprise me. Who would have thought that I would see the day where you give someone a compliment of your own free will?" Hey, that was not fair.

"I compliment you sometimes. And I compliment Mokuba all the time." She shook her head.

"No, we don't count, and you know it. Of course, I never thought I'd see you ever _ever_ let someone close enough to you to date them." Okay, that was enough.

"Whatever. That's not the point right now." I didn't want to talk about it. "We have other things to deal with." Not to be a killjoy, but this was serious business.

"Yeah..." Yami fell silent for a few minutes, a faraway look coming into his eyes. "Okay. I talked to Yugi," Yami told me. I knew he meant through the mind link. I might believe that stuff, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't freak me out all the time. "He's contacting Marik as we speak." I nodded.

"Good. But Yami... are you sure we can trust Marik? He seemed kind of crazy." That was putting it nicely, too. Really, he was closer to 'off his fucking rocker.'

"That's because he is certifiably insane. I personally wouldn't trust him at all, but we can definitely trust Malik, and Marik does whatever Malik tells him to do." Good enough, I guess. It made sense, though; the yami always seemed to listen to their hikari. I had seen it time and time again with the thief Bakura, who always listened to his weird little hikari Ryou, although that might have had more to do with Ryou bribing him with random things, about which I am better off not knowing.

"Um... what's going on here?" Shelly looked utterly confused. Shit. What would I tell her? Not the truth, surely.

"This is really weird stuff," Yami warned her, effectively making my decision for me. "And it makes no sense, but that's beside the point, so just hear me out." Shelly nodded. "Okay. This thing..."-he held up the millennium puzzle-"is a very valuable Egyptian artifact that has... powers. This is the millennium puzzle, and there are other millennium items besides this. How do I come to have this valuable artifact? Because I'm a 3000-year-old pharaoh. Well, former pharaoh. My spirit was contained in this puzzle for three millennia, until Yugi managed to complete the puzzle. He's my hikari, my lighter half, while I'm his yami, or darker half. There is a tomb robber, Bakura, whose soul was contained in the millennium ring. His hikari is Ryou. Then there's Marik and Malik. Marik is Malik's yami, but he's kind of a special case. Basically, he was created from Malik's bitterness, anger, and hatred. The thing with Marik is that he possesses the millennium rod, which grants the wielder the power to control minds, which can be very useful. We were planning on using it on Gozaburo's employee, to force him to tell us what he knows, but perhaps we can use it on Gozaburo himself. Have I forgotten anything, Seto?" Yami turned to me, and I had to stop myself from staring at his face. The expression he had gotten while explaining was so peaceful... he was beautiful. Come on, Seto! Pull it together!

"Um... the shadow powers." Shelly's expression was oddly normal, considering what she'd just been told. She looked more interested in what Yami had to say than anything else.

"Oh! Right. Well, since we wield the millennium items, and we are the darker counterparts of our hikaris, we have the power to manipulate shadows. I am planning on sending Gozaburo to the shadow realm when he gets close enough to us."

"That sounds... menacing."

"Yes. He will not be able to escape from there."

"Well, that's something you don't hear every day," Shelly mused as she seemingly digested the information. "And you're serious about all this?" Yami looked hurt. "No! I'm not saying that I don't believe you, I just was making sure you weren't trying to pull a fast one on me. If you say it's true, then I believe you." Yami relaxed, smiling at her.

"Yes, it's true. Oh, Marik and a few others will be arriving soon. He may bring Bakura with him. Just letting you know, because they are both fucking insane." Neither Shelly nor I missed the anger in his voice when he mentioned the thief.

"You don't like Bakura, do you?" Shelly asked. Yami shook his head, his expression dark. "Why, if I might ask?" Yami tensed up. Uh oh... "You don't have to tell me anything, if you don't want. I'm just being nosy." Yami shook his head.

"No, no... it's just... well, like I said... I was pharaoh in ancient Egypt. Well, my high priest's name was Seth... Seto is the reincarnation of Seth's soul. Seth and I..." He blushed furiously. "Yeah. Well, Bakura killed Seth." There was silence in the room. Mokuba was staring at Yami, open-mouthed, and Shelly looked heartbroken.

"I'm sorry... that's so sad..." Yami's expression began to waver, so I pulled him close to my body, holding him tightly.

"But it's okay, because I'm here now," I told him, kissing him softly. He clung to my arms, not letting me go.

"Seto," Yami murmured, looking up at me urgently. "They're here." Shelly didn't question how he knew, but we let them in through the back entrance. Yugi almost immediately ran straight into Yami's arms, and although I knew I was being retarded, I still felt a small twinge of jealousy. Which was ridiculous, but then again, I'm a ridiculous guy. Mokuba was also happy to see everyone, and Shelly looked astounded as she watched Yami and Yugi. Yugi noticed her, straightened up and offered his hand.

"So you're Yugi?" The midget's eyes got huge, like some kind of fucking anime character, and she laughed.

"H-how did you know?" Only the death glare that Yami was sending me prevented me from laughing out loud at him.

"They just filled me in on all the shadow stuff. You guys look so similar that you have to be his, uh... hikari." I was impressed that she was able to remember that much. "I'm Shelly. I'm this idiot's secretary." Hey! What the hell?! Yugi looked like his eyes were going to pop out of his head; he'd never heard someone speak to me in such a manner without suffering some sort of severe bodily harm.

"Oh, shut up," I muttered, ignoring the amazed look passed between Yugi and Malik.

"This is Marik, and this is Malik," Yugi told her. "And this- hey! Where'd Bakura go?" It was true; he'd vanished. Marik had a sinister smirk on his face, which made me very uncomfortable.

"Right behind you, lady." Shelly jumped slightly, although not as much as one would expect, considering that an insane, 3000-year-old sociopathic tomb robber had just materialized behind her, seemingly from out of nowhere. (Bam! Tomb robber outta fucking nowhere!)

"H-Hello," she greeted him, smiling brightly despite the initial shock. I glared at the thief, daring him to try anything, but the was blatantly ignoring me, staring at Shelly intently. She didn't waver once, and finally, he threw his head back and laughed.

"I like you. You've got guts." He turned to me. "And you can stop glaring at me, priest. We're here to help your sorry ass, so show a little gratitude." Why, that-

"Bakura, chill. Don't provoke him, that won't help anything." Hm. Maybe Marik wasn't so bad after all... "You can fuck with him later." Nope, just kidding.

"No. We need to focus on the things at hand," Yami interrupted, earning an unconcerned shrug from Marik and a death glare from Bakura. "I'm serious. Just... go with this for now. Please?"

"Why should I?" Bakura spat back.

"Because you owe us," Yami retorted. "You killed Seth, and I still spared you." What? He had?! Why hadn't he killed him, in the most painful way he could imagine?!

"Me killing him should have been compensation for the murders of my family." Yami threw his arms up in exasperation.

"Bakura! How many times must I tell you?! I had nothing, _nothing_ to do with Kul Ena. I wasn't the pharaoh at the time; it was my father. Even then, he wasn't the one who ordered the massacre! It was my father's brother who ordered it."

"Yes, well if your father hadn't allowed him to create the millennium items-"

"Then neither of you would be here! Just shut up, already! This really isn't the time to be fighting like this!" We all stared at Yugi. Where had that come from? He looked out of breath, like such an outburst had taken a lot out of him. "Sorry. But seriously, you guys. Just knock it off, alright?" Yami and Bakura exchanged looks (glares, actually), and then turned so that they were facing away from each other.

"Fine, but I'm not going to talk to him," Bakura finally conceded, Yami nodding in agreement.

"Alright, thank you," I told them. "Now, what we need to do is this..."

After briefly throwing together a plan, we had nothing to do but wait. We idled for over an hour, Shelly talking to everyone. She got on well with all of them, surprisingly, even the crazies. Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised; her personality is much less confrontational than mine, and it helps that she doesn't instantly hate everyone she meets. She even managed to get Yami and Bakura to acknowledge each other's presences without bloodshed. I don't know how she did it, but by the time the sun started to set, they were exchanging short, strained responses. Sure, it was obvious that they hated each other, but they weren't at each other's throats like usual. Yugi looked absolutely thrilled at this development; I'd never really noticed how much the conflict between the two bothered him until now. Not that I really cared one way or another about the brat; as far as I was concerned, he could disappear off the face of the Earth (okay, maybe that's a little harsh), but Yami was so protective of him that when Yugi was happy, so was Yami. Or maybe that had to do with their creepy mind-link thing. Either way, if I could make Yami smile by being nice to Yugi, then so be it.

"Seto," Shelly called, something in her voice putting me on defense.

"What is it? What's happened?" She was staring at the computer screen, her face pale.

"Come here. Look at this. Now." Shit. She only bossed me around like that (seriously, at any rate. She joked all the time) when it was something very serious. In this case, it would most likely be something to do with _him._ Sure enough, when I looked over her shoulder at the screen, there was a new e-mail from Gozaburo.

'Shelly, I am so disappointed. What did I tell you? I have no choice but to take drastic measures. I'm outside right now. Let me in, and I will be kinder in my punishment. I'm outside the south corridor.'

"Shit!" I slammed my hand on the table. "Shelly, I won't let him do anything to you. Just... stay hidden, okay? Don't go anywhere near him." She opened her mouth to argue with me. "No! I mean it. This is a direct order, as your superior." She closed her mouth, glowering. Sorry, but I had to be like that if I wanted to keep her safe. After all, it was, once again, my fault that she was in danger. What the hell is with everyone I like (yeah, I'll admit it. I like her. She's about the closest thing I have to a friend- other than Yami and Mokuba) being in mortal danger because of me? It's total bullshit. Maybe I should just kill all of my known enemies, then move my loved ones to a secluded island in the middle of the ocean that no one could find. I could afford it...

"Seto? What are we going to do?" I turned to Yami.

"Yami, I don't want you to be in danger. You stay here with Shelly; you too, Yugi, Mokuba, Malik. No, don't fucking argue with me!" I snapped, glaring at them. "Now please, just... hide. Shelly, you know where to hide." She nodded, taking Mokuba's hand and leading him, Yugi, and Malik into one of the conference rooms. I knew why she had chosen that one; after I had taken over the company, I had installed a series of hidden passages that only Shelly, Mokuba and I knew about, for situations such as this. The one in that room led to a room underground, which, in turn, had more hidden passages leading to more rooms. Because of my (well-founded) paranoia, I had my very own labyrinth. Fuck Minos, it's Kaiba's labyrinth.

"Yami, what are you doing?" I asked, frustrated. He was standing next to me, staring at me. Shelly stopped in the doorway, waiting for him, but after a moment, Yugi stood on his toes, whispering in her ear. She nodded, glanced at me apologetically, and led them into the room.

"I'm not leaving you, Seto. If I lose you again..." Yami's voice broke, a tear running down his cheek. To my surprise, Bakura didn't seize this seemingly perfect chance to kick him while he was down; rather, he looked almost... guilty. Could it be? The thief feeling remorse for his actions? Probably not; it wasn't within his emotional range to feel guilty.

"Yami... what if this is what Isis saw?" I whispered, but his expression didn't waver; if anything, it grew even more resolute.

"Then I want you to be beside me when I pass."

"Yami, no-"

"Well, hello there, Seto. How have you been faring?" Oh, Gods, no. No, no, no! It couldn't be him. How had he gotten in? He had said- "You didn't really think that I would wait patiently to be let in, did you? You fool." He laughed cruelly, and despite my frantic searching, I couldn't locate from where the voice was coming.

"Where the fuck are you?" I hissed, my eyes still darting nervously around the room. Gods, this was bad... here I was, out in the open, unable to protect either myself or Yami... I was so vulnerable. Amazing how he could always manage to do that to me. Cruel laughter from one corner of the room drew my gaze to an area obscured by shadows, the light growing dimmer every second with the setting sun. There, I saw a flash of movement, and I shoved Yami behind me. The thief and the spirit had disappeared, to where I wasn't sure, but they weren't my concern at the moment. There, stepping closer so that I could get a better view, was the man who had haunted my nightmares, who had plagued my emotions, for the better part of my life. I knew right away that it was him, although he seemed to have gained a little weight since I had last seen him. He smirked at me, his cold, black eyes devoid of any emotion. With a twinge, I realized that it was the countenance that I wore at times, when I didn't want others to see my feelings (yes, I have feelings, believe it or not). His mustache had also grown, and although it covered most of his mouth, it still curled upward at the corners, giving him the look of a supervillain. Yeah, that was him, alright. I'd never met someone capable of such cold, selfish calculations, without any love for anyone. Even when he preserved Noah's mind, it wasn't out of love; he simply wanted to ensure that Kaiba Corp went to his heir. The way he stood, too, brought back memories better left buried. It was that stance, self-assured and full of power, that had stood over me countless times, watching me work, making sure I wasn't slacking off, or punishing me when he saw fit. I could see that there were at least two other men with him, and I felt another chill of fear. How had they gotten there? We had been in this room the entire time. We had chosen this room specifically because of its design; there were only two doors, and no windows. We had been monitoring both doors, so how had he slipped past us? It made no sense!

"Are you wondering how I got in? Seto, come now. I thought you were brighter than that. I guess I was wrong. How did I ever let a moron like you take my name, let alone my company?" Even now, even after so many years of hating him deeply and ridding myself of his ideas, the words struck a tender spot. To say that I was not worthy of what I had, that I was not intelligent... well, it had been drilled into me for all the years I was with him, and in response, I had worked my hardest. I knew now that I had been playing right into his hands; he had wanted me to feel inferior, like I owed him everything, while he profited from my work. His words had ruled every second of my life; whether I ate that day, whether I saw Mokuba, how severely I would be punished, and how that punishment would be carried out... The most damaging aspect of the punishment, though, was the belief that I deserved it. I knew no better; what was I supposed to think? He had raised me to be _the best_, and he punished me when I did poorly. Why would he punish me if I were smart enough? To my young, brainwashed mind, it made sense. If I didn't do as well as I should have, then I would be punished. After all, when a dog acted up, you would punish it; why should it be any different with me? I knew what was expected of me, yet I still dared to fail. That couldn't be tolerated. It didn't make the punishment any less painful, though. If anything, it made it worse, because I felt... so guilty. I felt like nothing. I had brought it upon myself. He used Mokuba against me, too. If I failed continuously, he told me, then the punishments that I received would be imposed upon Mokuba as well. That was something that I absolutely could not have happen. It was one thing to punish me for being stupid, worthless, and lazy, but that Mokuba should have to endure such... torture, because of me... that was unbearable. I had to do anything I could to prevent that. I think it's that constant fear of bringing that upon Mokuba, and the necessity to prevent that no matter what, that made me as cold and ruthless as I am. I'm getting better, after years of being away from Gozaburo, but I'm still a total ass. Seeing him again... was bringing back these feelings and fears that I thought I had left behind.I shuddered. No, I couldn't let him beat me, before we had even begun. He knew that his presence had affected me; I could see it in the triumphant way his eyes shone. Well, that would be his downfall. It had been his fatal flaw before; I could use it against him again. He thought that he could beat me by breaking me. Little did he know that he couldn't break me any more than he already had.

"Why are you here?" I demanded, sounding much tougher than I actually felt.

"You know why I'm here, Seto. Don't make this any harder than it needs to be. I mean, I know the reason you brought Mokuba and your friend there-" He gestured to Yami- "was so that you could negotiate with me." Suddenly, Yami flinched violently.

"Seto," he whispered urgently. "They're in trouble!" I didn't need to ask who 'they' were.

"Do not harm any of my companions," I warned Gozaburo, but he laughed callously.

"I'll hurt whomever I wish," he retorted."Starting probably with that bitch secretary." He spoke briefly into a headset microphone, and a few moments later, we heard the sounds of a struggle. A group of his men came through the door through which Shelly had taken the others.

"No..." They apparently hadn't gotten very far before Gozaburo's men had captured them. None of them were hurt that I could tell- yet. "Yami, tell him to stop struggling," I whispered. Yugi was fighting the men tooth and claw, and while I commend his bravery, trying to fight a group of men, all of whom are more than twice your size, is just stupid. Yugi stopped almost immediately. Mokuba looked irritated, like this was nothing new (well God, he gets kidnapped like every five seconds, it seems like), but I could see a shadow of fear beneath the calm expression that he was working to maintain. Shelly met my gaze, her eyes apologetic. She had nothing to be sorry for; I was the one who had dragged her into this shit. "Gozaburo," I addressed my... step-father? No, former step-father. "Do not harm them in any way." He leered at me.

"Oh? And if I do?" I clenched my hands into tight fists. If he did, I couldn't do shit about it, and he knew that. So, I changed the subject.

"How are you not dead?" If there was one thing that Gozaburo loved to talk about, it was how clever, rich, or powerful he is. Sure enough, he jumped at the chance to edify himself.

"I jumped from the window; you saw that," he told me. "But I didn't hit the ground. I had figured all your shit out by that point; I knew you would take the company, but by then, there was nothing I could do to stop it. So I had my men plant a fake body. The police, and medical examiners who handled the case were all my men as well, so no one ever knew that anything is amiss. At the funeral, the 'body' on display was a wax replica." That bastard.

"So what have you been doing the last few years?" He glared at me.

"For one thing, why would I tell you that? I'll not make the same mistake of trusting you even the slightest bit. For another thing, stop trying to change the subject or distract me. I know damn well what you're doing." I cringed inwardly. Well, there went my brilliant plan for buying us time... "Now, Seto, we can do this the hard way, or you can be a good boy, and do as you're told." Gods, how many times had I heard that last bit? It hurt to hear it again.

"And what exactly would that entail?"

"Obviously, you would give me my company back. Then, I would put you to work- without monetary pay, of course- putting right everything that you've ruined in my absence. In exchange, I won't touch Mokuba." Yeah, Mokuba would be safe, but what about- "That one behind you, though, I will take, one way or another, as well as the miniature." No! Absolutely not! That couldn't happen... Yami whimpered quietly, and Yugi's eyes were huge, shining with fear as he looked back and forth between Gozaburo and me.

"The second part of those terms are unacceptable," I told him coldly, fighting to keep my voice steady.

"Well, that's too bad now, isn't it?" He smirked. "Like I said- I will have them, one way or another. They're less likely to be hurt if you cooperate. I'm surprised by you, though, Seto. I thought I'd taught you better than to let another person get close enough to be used against you." That fucking bastard. Yes, he had taught me that. Why do you think I constantly pushed away Yugi and his friends, and their insistence on being my friend? Aside from the fact that they're annoying, of course. Really, though, I never wanted to be so lonely, but to let someone close to me... was too great of a risk. I already had my hands full rescuing Mokuba from kidnappers, I didn't need someone else to worry about as well. "Well then, as I stated, Shelly, your blatant defiance of me needs to be punished." No! No, he couldn't... no...

"Gozaburo, just let her go. She has nothing to do with anything," I pleaded, not caring that I was begging. He laughed cruelly.

"Where would the fun be in that? She might not be directly involved, but the second you called her that night, she was a part of this. I gave her a chance, and she chose the wrong option. That cannot go unpunished. And Seto, you will watch every second of it, knowing that it's entirely your fault that she's suffering." Gods, this couldn't be happening! Shelly was giving me a look, and I could tell that she was trying to be brave, and to comfort me, but she looked so frightened, that her reassurance only made me feel more guilty.

"Gozaburo, I would strongly advise that you do _not_ harm her." Huh? Yami had spoken... Gozaburo looked not only surprised, but delighted.

"Oh? And why would that be, my dear?" Gah! Don't call him that!!! No one can call him that but me...

"Because you won't live to regret it," Yami answered, his shadow powers beginning to swirl around him.

"Your cheap theater tricks do nothing for me," the man scoffed. Well, you bastard, that would be what took you down! Gozaburo nodded his head, and immediately, about six men dove for Yami at once. And then, with a flash of unnatural, purple light and loud crackling noises, they were gone. Gozaburo's face was (almost) as stunned as when I took over. "What did you do, you freak?" Behind Gozaburo, the rest of his men stood, staring blankly ahead, their grips on the captives going slack. What? I then saw the triumphant expression on Malik's face, and I knew that Marik was using the rod to ensure the safety of his hikari and those with him. It made sense for him to protect his hikari first and foremost; I couldn't blame him. I just hoped that he would hurry up in time to help us...

"I just sent them away. They aren't dead," Yami told him, panting heavily. This wasn't good; he had fallen to his knees, shaking, and I could tell that using his powers to transport that many people to who knows how far away and in such a short time had drained his energy. Gozaburo threw back his head and laughed.

"You fool! I don't care if they're dead or not! Do you really think that I was concerned about that?" Yami just stared at him, his anger evident on his face. "I don't know what that trick was, but now I'm even more convinced of how perfect you would be for my collection."

"Goddammit, Gozaburo! You can't fucking have him!" I shouted, instantly regretting it. No one talked to Gozaburo that way and lived to tell the tale. Absolutely no one. What do you think happened to his wife after Noah died? She blamed Gozaburo, and they got into a huge argument that I could hear from my room. The next day, she was gone, the whole floor smelled like bleach, and there were official-looking men installing new carpeting. It doesn't take a genius (although I am one) to figure out what happened to her. "I-I apologize, I spoke without thinking-" The look in his eyes was one that I had only seen on rare occasions, and those memories are what make up my darkest nightmares, to this day.

"Seto Kaiba, you truly are a fool," he hissed. "But not for much longer." So quickly that I barely saw him move, he whipped out a gun, aiming it at my chest. "I was going to keep you alive, but you know what? I don't want to take that chance. As long as you're around, you pose a threat. But before I end your pathetic life, know this- Mokuba, and this guy, whoever he is, and Shelly....anyone you've ever cared about...will suffer. It will be all your fault. I will personally make sure that they suffer, so that they will be begging for death." Gods, no... Yami was struggling to muster enough shadow magic to protect me, but he was having too much trouble. He wouldn't make it in time.

"Goodbye, Seto Kaiba," Gozaburo hissed through clenched teeth, his eyes alight with a sort of crazed excitement. I closed my eyes, ready for the coming darkness, but when the gun sounded... someone else screamed in agony.

* * *

_Wait, now, here when will you believe?_  
_ Me, I'm merely asking you to help me._  
_ When did I say to murder?_  
_ Wait, now, here. Please hear me out._  
_ Time consumer, time consuming, consume me._  
_ Down, and out._  
_ Now._

* * *

A/N: Oh, the suspense... or not. it will be okay, though. just so you know. This chapter took me forever to write, and it still is messed up. I know there are certain things about their backgrounds, etc. that don't follow the actual story, but I'm changing them to make them work for me.

Just a little note that I found hysterical: In the manga, Gozaburo jumped out of the window. In the anime (japanese version), he had a heart attack and died (Kira? I think so), and in the english anime, he ran away and disappeared. It's the same thing for Mokuba and Seto's parents. in the manga and the japanese anime, they definitely were dead. in the american one, though, they just disappeared. apparently, america can't handle hearing about death, even without even seeing it, because it's not like it showed them die, it just talked about it. It is sooooo much better for kids to think that their parents just up and abandoned them. That's like when I was little and my grandpa died, my mom was pregnant and all hormonal, so she couldn't handle the part in Bambi where the mom dies. Unfortunately, that was my favorite movie at the time, because I was really into animals. So what does she do? Edit the meadow scene out of the movie. Just the death part, though. Is it any coincidence that I have abandonment issues (just ask my beta)? I think not. Sorry to ramble, but I found that pretty funny.

So the song 'Time Consumer' is a good song. it doesn't sound _too_ terribly depressing, until you read the Amory wars (the story that most of Coheed and Cambria's music follows), and you find out that the song is about Coheed killing his children (the twins, Matthew and Maria). that whole story is a total downer, but it makes the music so much easier to understand, and the music is absolutely amazing. but anyway, I thought that these two parts of it worked for this chapter.

Oh. when Bakura shows up behind Shelly, I have in parentheses "Bam! Tomb robber outta fucking nowhere!" I'm sure you've seen the picture of the alpaca bodyslamming the kid (i think he's playing rugby), and the caption is "Alpaca outta fucking nowhere!" Well, being the mature college students that we are, Krista and I use that for just about everything. Like we went to see Percy Jackson, and at one point Grover is running and smashes into Percy. I lean over to Krista and whisper (rather loudly, now that I think about it), "Satyr, outta fucking nowhere!" and she about died on the spot. yeah, we have fun. oh, and if you haven't seen the picture, I would recommend looking it up, purely for your own amusement. :)

*many thanks to soundofmadness223 (aka Krista)*

I would love you forever and ever and then some if you would review!!!!

thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it!

~alex~


	9. Chapter 9: Hearshot Kid Disaster

(I own nothing.)

* * *

~Chapter Nine: Hearshot Kid Disaster~

* * *

_Wound open and squeezing my heart against this pain inflicts _  
_ and in passion I bleed for it _  
_ but with this what they gave me this book _  
_ and flint and a match to go with it._

* * *

"Yami, no!" No, no, no! Why would he do that?! No! "Yami, what the hell? Why the fuck did you do that! Yami..." I was crying. That doesn't fucking happen. I mean, I just don't cry. I don't. I'm Seto Kaiba. Gozaburo was standing there, looking slightly pissed off and disgusted.

"You fool," he said, looking at Yami scornfully. "I would have let you live. Oh well."

"Yami, don't die," I pleaded, kneeling next to him, not even noticing the blood that was covering my hands as it oozed from the wound on his chest. "Please, don't die..." He coughed, grimacing in pain.

"You... died on me," he whispered hoarsely, smiling a weak smile. He was trying to make me feel better... Oh, Gods. Something about this scene was horribly familiar... Gozaburo lowered the gun so that it was pointing directly at my head, but by this point, I welcomed death. Yami was dying; there was no doubt about that. Even if we dropped everything and rushed him to the hospital, there was no way we would get there on time. I didn't want to stay alive if he was going to die on me... it was unfair, really, come to think about it. We'd had such a short time together, after waiting for so long to be reunited... I closed my eyes as I held onto Yami's limp hand, bracing myself for the shot that would end it all... but it didn't come. I opened my eyes to see Gozaburo staring blankly at me, not really seeing anything. Behind him was Marik with the rod, glowing with eerie purple light, sweating and breathing heavily from the strain. Bakura joined him, the millennium ring glowing brightly from where it hung on his chest, and he too began emanating shadows. "S-Seto?" Yami whispered, blood gurgling in his throat with every breath.

"What is it, love?" I whispered, holding him to my body.

"I love you. Don't forget... me, but you-you have to t-take care of M-Mokuba," he managed to say, his eyelids fluttering closed for a second. "But I love you, forever." No, this couldn't be happening! I'd just found happiness, and leave it to that bastard Gozaburo to take it from me. I glanced up when I heard a sound, and saw that Gozaburo had regained consciousness, but by the time he figured out what was going on, it was too late for him, and with a flash of darkness, he was gone. Good riddance...

"Gods, Yami... I love you, I love you so much..." It felt like something was being torn out of my chest and throat very forcefully.

"Move, priest," hissed a voice, and I looked up to see Bakura standing above us, sweat trickling down his temple.

"Why the fuck should I, so that you can rub it in his face?" I spat, furious. The look he gave me could curdle milk.

"Get. The. Fuck. Out. Of. My. Way." Well, when he said it like that... but Yami... I kissed him softly on the lips, and it tore at my heart the way he tried to return the kiss, but was too weak. I moved over (slightly) so that the bastard thief could kneel next to me, taking Yami's other hand in his.

"What are you doing?" I snapped at him, naturally suspicious of his motives.

"Shut up, priest. Just shut the fuck up." I was about to argue, but I felt a hand on my shoulder. Marik was shaking his head at me, motioning for me to remain silent. He looked awful. He was drenched in sweat, and there were dark circles under his eyes. He was gasping for air, and his limbs were shaking. I hadn't ever realized how much stress the shadow powers put on your body.

"Pharaoh? Pharaoh! Open your goddamn eyes, you little shit," Bakura demanded. "You aren't getting off that easily." Yami's eyes opened slowly, and I could see the fear and confusion in his eyes as they sought me out. "No, look at me. Yami, look at me." His eyes slid in and out of focus as he gazed at Bakura, and I wondered how much he was actually aware of. Bakura put a hand over Yami's wound, making him cry out in pain, and I had to fight the urge to jump on him and kill him for even touching Yami. Marik was still giving me a look, though, and I thought it would be wiser to stay still. I held Yami's hand tightly, as if afraid that I would lose him by letting go. As if I could keep him here if I held on tightly enough... "Yami, no. Don't close your eyes, you bastard. Open them!" Bakura shouted when Yami's eyes closed again. The thief's breathing was labored, and I could see that he, too, was shaking. When I looked more closely, I saw tendrils of shadow leaving his hands and going into Yami's body.

"What are you doing to him?" I asked, panicking. Bakura glared at me again.

"Look. Do you want him to die? Then keep distracting me." He turned back to Yami, shouting at him to keep his eyes open, to stay focused. Surely, he wouldn't be trying to save Yami... would he? "Hah! Got it!" he shouted triumphantly, holding up a small piece of metal that I recognized as the bullet. "Here." He handed it to me, before placing both hands on Yami's chest, which was rising and falling more erratically than before. "Shit!" he shouted when Yami's eyes rolled back in his head. "We're losing him. Yami! Goddammit, pharaoh! Are you gonna let him kill you? Really? After all those years? I'm the only one who's supposed to kill you."

Yami didn't respond, but his breathing was becoming more and more ragged, and he gave one or two small twitches. Bakura grabbed his face, smearing blood across his cheeks. "ATEM!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs. "OPEN YOUR GODDAMN FUCKING EYES!" Yami kicked his leg weakly, and with great effort, fixed his gaze on me. I could see how hard it was, and I knew that he was so close to being gone... "Listen, pharaoh. Focus on the priest. Don't focus on anything else. You don't wanna leave him, do you?" Yami's eyes widened in panic. "Yeah. I didn't think so. Focus on staying with him," Bakura instructed, so different now than he usually was. I clutched at Yami's arm, unable to look away from the pain-filled crimson eyes before me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Bakura twisting the shadows, sending them one by one into the wound. His hands had begun to shake, and he looked about ready to collapse. Marik stepped closer to Yami.

"Bakura, don't overdo it," he mumbled as a trickle of blood ran from the thief's mouth, and I realized that he was concerned for Bakura's safety.

"Shut up, Marik," Bakura hissed. Marik looked hurt for about a millisecond, before apparently deciding something. He put his hand on Bakura's shoulder, and I saw that he was giving Bakura some of his own shadow powers. After a few minutes, Yami blinked, and then his face contorted into a horrible, pained grimace. He let out a blood-curdling scream, and he squeezed my hand so hard, I thought it would break.

"W-what's going on?" I gasped to the two. Marik glanced at me.

"It's good- he can...feel... the pain," he panted, and I shut up. If he was helping Yami, then I wasn't going to divert his attention. I couldn't let myself get hopeful, though. I had to assume that Yami would die. If I let myself have hope, then things would go terribly wrong, just like they always had in the past.

"Shit, Marik! Hold him down!" Bakura shouted as Yami began to thrash around. Marik did his best to hold him down, but in his weakened state, it was no easy feat. I helped, murmuring to Yami about how it would be okay... "Almost there... almost there..." After just a few more moments, Yami suddenly lay still, breathing heavily and sobbing quietly. Bakura sat back on the floor, sighing with relief. Marik lay on the tile floor, and I wondered (briefly) if he'd passed out. I didn't really pay much attention to him, though, as I rushed to get a good look at Yami, to see if he was okay, if he was still there.

"Seto? What's going on?" he whispered, looking around in fear. He no longer looked to be in pain, though. "How... what happened?" He tried to sit up, but winced, holding a hand to his chest.

"Don't try to move, pharaoh," Bakura demanded weakly. "It will scar, but you'll survive. Unfortunately." He began coughing violently, and it became apparent that so much use of his powers had taken a toll on his body; he was coughing up small amounts of blood.

"Bakura, are you okay?" I asked quickly. I didn't care that I was almost being decent to him; he had just saved Yami. "Don't try to move." I brought out my cell phone; now that Gozaburo was gone, I didn't need to worry about him shooting me before I could call for help. I called my emergency medical staff, and they arrived within ten minutes. They asked no more questions than were necessary for them to treat the two yamis, and although Yami was weak and shaky, and in some pain, they declared him healthy after a quick run-down.

"Sir, we will have to take them back with us. They need to be treated," one of them told me. I nodded.

"Very well. Just make sure they don't die on us." He nodded in understanding, and I had to convince Bakura to let them put him on a stretcher. He still wasn't happy about it, though, and swore violently until they forced an oxygen mask over his mouth. Marik really had passed out; either that, or he just didn't care. That was just as likely, I suppose. Either way, he didn't move even the slightest when they put him on the stretcher. Yami tried to stand up, but I stopped him, picking him up despite his protests.

"Dammit, Seto! Put me down! I'll be okay to walk by myself!" I fixed him with a skeptical look, and he blushed, looking at his hands in embarrassment.

"Yami. You were just basically dead. You lost like, half of your blood, and Bakura almost couldn't save you. It took both him and Marik to save you, and it totally wiped them out. There is no way in hell that I am letting you walk on your own after watching you die in my arms." He looked a little more willing to let me carry him, but he didn't really have much of a choice, either. He was still too weak to actually do much (despite what he would have me believe). I turned to one of my men who had come in with the paramedics. "Make sure you get all of this cleaned up." He nodded silently, and I carried Yami outside, where we were attacked by a frantic Yugi and Malik, and an almost-as-frantic Mokuba, who latched himself to my side, hugging me tightly.

"Oh my God, Yami! What happened?!" Yugi was hysterical. "Why are you all bloody, and wh-"

"Shut up and let him speak!" I snapped, interrupting the midget.

"Seto, be nice," Yami chastised me. Ha. Fat chance of that happening anytime in the foreseeable future (and don't even _mention_ that Isis bitch). "Yugi, I'm okay. Don't worry about me. Oh... but someone should probably cal Ryou," he said, the look on Yugi's face turning from concern to one of pure horror.

"W-What happened to Bakura? Is he dead?"

"What about Marik?!" Malik broke in, practically in tears. "They got us out of there, and then he had to use the millennium rod, and the mind link went blank!" I almost felt bad for the kid. He was hyperventilating, and there were now tears falling from his purple eyes. He reminded me of how I had been less than an hour ago, when I was sure that Yami was going to die. I sighed wearily.

"Calm down, you two. They're both alive, so just chill. Yami, for whatever reason, decided that it would be a good idea go and get himself shot-"

"Yami!!!" Yugi screeched, horrified.

"Yugi, hush. He was going to die if I didn't save him," Mokuba whimpered, although it was barely audible, his face pressed against my side.

"As I was _saying_," I continued, shooting a look at the brat. "Yami here thought that it would be a good idea to take a bullet for me, which in my opinion is a horrible idea, but I'm a little biased. Anyway, he was hurt badly, and he was... dying." I swallowed. Although he was right here, safe in my arms, it still hurt to even think about it. "He was dying, and the thief tried to heal him with his shadow powers." The hikaris must have understood better than I the effects of using so much shadow magic, because they both gasped in unison. "He didn't have enough power, so Marik helped him." Malik's face turned about three shades paler.

"E-Even after using so much with the rod?" I nodded, and he looked like he might start crying again.

"Actually, my paramedics have them on stretchers. They should be bringing them out any second." As if on cue, the paramedics came out of the building, bearing stretchers and yamis.

"Marik!" Malik shouted, sprinting to him. The paramedic glanced at me in alarm, but I nodded quickly to let him know that it was okay. It was actually sort of touching, how upset he was, but I wasn't really concerned with the Ishtars.

"Aibou, why are you crying?" Yami asked quietly, and I realized that the shrimp had tears coursing down his face.

"Yeah, why are you crying? He's okay," Mokuba pointed out, finally detaching himself from me.

"Because!" Yugi shouted, covering his face with his hands. "You-you-you could have died! I knew you were dying! I could _feel_ you dying, and I couldn't do shit about it! Goddammit... What would I do if you died, Yami?"

"Yugi... I'm sorry. But it could happen, and I know it would be hard for you, but if I die, I need you to go on without me. You don't need me." I could see that Yugi wasn't going to buy that shit, and for once, I agreed completely with him.

"No, Yami! Don't you get it?! "I-I-I... You're my other half! I _do_ need you! _He_ needs you!" he shouted, pointing at me. "He never fucking smiles, unless it's at Mokuba," he continued a little more quietly. "He has been happier since he's had you than I've ever seen him, in all the years I've known him. Don't you get it?! You can't fucking die! You can't... you can't..." he trailed off. Shit, I hadn't known that the punk had ever really noticed my lack of enthusiasm towards life. It kind of creeped me out, to be honest.

"Aibou... please just listen, and try to understand. I lost him once because of my own inadequacies."

"What? That wasn't your fault!" I protested, but he put a finger to my lips.

"I was right there, and I couldn't do anything to save him. I... I couldn't let that happen this time," he whispered, anguish audible in his voice. "I couldn't watch you die again," he told me, wrapping his arms around my neck. "It would have killed me."

* * *

_Thank god for your strength will you hold your breath? _  
_ waiting for me to exhale in the short life lived_.

* * *

A/N: Heh... yeah... So the song Hearshot Kid Disaster is mostly talking about the Amory Wars... it mentions Paris: Earth from the story, as well as General Mayo (grrrrr!). Plus, the Star (alienlike thing) that Claudio accidentally woke up, that rebelled and got killed ended up being a hero for the stars, and they ended up calling him "Hearshot Kid." Totally inconsequential to this fanfic, but oh well. the whole song basically has the feeling of a last-ditch effort, where nothing is really going how it's supposed to. I thought it was fitting, and I like these lines. so yeah.

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

tell me what you think!!!

thank you for reading!

~alex~


	10. Chapter 10: The Running Free

(I own nothing)

* * *

~Chapter Ten: The Running Free~

* * *

_You've come so far from innocence_  
_ Provided all the consequence_  
_ Only what does it matter now?

* * *

_

After we convinced Yugi to let go of Yami's arm, we headed to the hospital to check up on Bakura and Marik.

"Can we pick Ryou up?" Mokuba asked, giving me the puppy eyes even before I had a chance to refuse. I sighed.

"Whatever. Do you know how to get there?" He nodded. "Then go tell the driver where to go."

"Thank you thank you thank you!!!" He scrambled to the front of the limo. Gods, he was adorable.

"Are-are they going to be okay?" Malik asked, his voice shaking. "I still can't contact Marik..."

"He'll be fine, Malik," Yami told him kindly. "He used a tremendous amount of shadow magic, and you know how that wears us out." Malik didn't look like he felt too much better. We stopped for a moment to get Ryou, and I was shocked at how awful that little freak looked.

"Get there quickly, please," he requested sadly. We arrived soon, and Shelly and I pretty much had to hold the two frantic hikaris back. The receptionist looked like she was about to panic, until she saw me. I could do whatever I wanted, go wherever I wanted in this hospital, and everyone knew me (I had, after all, single-handedly funded the entire facility).

"How can I help you, Mr. Kaiba?" she asked pleasantly, her eyes widening as she observed the blood covering Yami and myself. Oops...

"We need to see the two patients my men brought in not long ago." She nodded, giving me quick directions to the room. Yami and I (he was a little stronger now, and insisted on walking) led our group to the specified room, where we found Bakura and Marik sitting propped up on pillows, talking quietly to each other. They were both stuck full of tubes and needles, hooked up to all sorts of machines. Each grinned broadly upon seeing their hikaris, who in turn dashed to them.

"Careful, you two," Yugi called, actually being reasonable for once. His warning fell on deaf ears, though, and Malik and Ryou leapt on their respective yamis. Yugi shook his head, smiling, before turning to Yami, Mokuba, Shelly, and me. "You guys... somehow, I don't think those two will be leaving any time soon, so we should probably get going." He gave me a look, and I nodded in understanding. He didn't want Yami to wear himself out any more than he already had. I figured that since he had the whole mind link thing, he would be a pretty good judge of how tired out Yami was.

"I agree. My driver is still outside; I'll have him take us back. Yugi..." ugh. As much as I didn't want him anywhere near my house... "You are welcome to spend the night if you would like to. Just this once, though, and only because I think Yami wants to spend time with you." I owed it to the kid (although I could never admit it aloud). After all, not only had I been a jerk to him since we met, I had pretty much stolen his other half. On top of all that, Yami had almost died trying to save _me,_ and Yugi had felt the whole thing through the mind link. I figured it was the least I could do for him.

"Oh!" He looked thrilled. "But... are you sure?" He asked, his forehead wrinkling. I rolled my eyes.

"Dammit, Yugi! When am I ever not sure?" I snapped, and despite the bite to my voice, the midget smiled.

"Thanks, Kaiba!" He shouted, dashing over to where Mokuba was talking to Marik and Malik.

"Come on. Let's get going," I called to them, my patience already wearing thin. I just wanted to get Yami home, where he would for sure be safe. It had been too close of a call...

"Alright. Bye, you guys!" Mokuba and Yugi bid the others farewell, and came to stand by me. Yami, however, hesitated.

"Yami? What's wrong?" he smiled.

"Nothing, Seto," he reassured me, patting my hand. "I'll be right back." He walked to Marik's bed, bowing his head. "Marik... thank you. I am in your debt." Marik looked a little uneasy.

"Uh... don't worry about it, pharaoh," he told Yami, running a hand through his spiky blond locks. "I'm just glad you didn't kick the bucket on us." Yami then went to kneel beside Bakura's bed, so that he was just about at eye-level with the thief.

"Bakura... I don't know how to thank you. I am eternally grateful. But..." he hesitated.

"Why did I do it?" Bakura guessed, his voice hoarse. Yami nodded. "Hell, I dunno," the thief said, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly, then wincing in pain at the motion. "I figured that if that bastard killed you, then I'd have to deal with his sorry ass-" he jabbed a finger at me "-whining and carrying on. Plus, it would have upset your hikari, which would have upset mine, and I can't have that, now can I?" Yami smiled.

"Well, thank you, Bakura." Yami took the thief's hand. Grr...

"Hey, I still fully intend on killing you." Yugi let out an alarmed squeak, even though it was pretty fucking obvious that he wasn't serious. "Ra, Yugi. I'm joking. I..." He glared at Yami and me. "I'm sorry for killing you, you miserable son-of-a-bitch," he spat at me, his face regaining some color. A very odd way to apologize to someone. It wasn't exactly nice, but I inclined my head slightly, letting him know that his apology was accepted. After all, it isn't every day that the thief king apologizes to someone who isn't his hikari. "And you, pharaoh. You still aren't my favorite person in the world, and somehow, I don't think you ever will be."

"Better bloody well not be," Ryou muttered under his breath.

"Relax, hikari." Bakura ruffled the boy's hair affectionately before turning back to Yami. "But I..." he scratched he back of his head nervously. "I don't blame you for Kul Ena," he admitted, lowering his eyes to the floor. "It wasn't you. Hell, with your pansy ass? It couldn't be. The worst thing you ever did was mind crush."

"Hey," Yami warned, raising his hand in the signature mind crush position. "I'm still not opposed to a mind crush or two." Bakura laughed, ignoring the way Ryou tensed up, glaring at Yami.

"So, pharaoh, as much as this kills me to say it, I apologize for being such a douchebag for the last 3000 years." Yami smiled at Bakura. "So, what do you say, _Pharaoh Atem_, am I forgiven?" Yami stood, bowing his head slightly to kiss Bakura's forehead.

"Indeed you are, _Thief Lord Bakura Touzoku_. But really, Bakura. Thank you. Now, we must be going. Sorry to keep you waiting," he apologized to Yugi, Mokuba, Shelly and me. Hey, speaking of Mokuba...

"Mokuba?!" What's the matter?" he had tears in his eyes- what had happened?! Was he hurt?!

"Calm down, big brother. It's just... that was so nice. It was like something out of movie, or a soap opera, or something." Oh...

"Mokuba, since when do you watch soap operas?" He glared at me.

"Seto, be nice," Shelly hissed.

"That's not even the point, Seto! It's just... oh, never mind. Let's go home." he sniffled, whiping his nose on his sleeve. I put one arm around him, and the other around Yami. Yugi took Yami's other hand, while Shelly ruffled Mokuba's hair. It was cheesy, but it was like that, in some bizarre _Wizard of Oz- The Ancient Egypt Edition_ line, that we headed to the car. Maybe it was Mokuba's overactive emotions that were getting to me, but I liked the way it felt, having all of us together like that. _Maybe,_ I thought as I helped Yami into the car, _this is what a real family feels like._ Yeah, I know, it sounds completely and totally painfully corny, but to be fair, My childhood had been... like nothing any child should have to endure. And, as much as I tried for my brother, poor Mokuba hadn't really ever had a chance at a real family. Maybe that was why he liked hanging out with Yugi, and their little group of misfits. Suddenly, I appreciated them a little more. Maybe this would be good for Mokuba- ah, hell. Who am I fooling? I wanted this family, this sense of belonging, just as badly, if not more. And now, it seemed, with our strange group, I had found it.

* * *

_Cause you're going home_  
_ You're running free_  
_ As only you would be if you never owed them anything_  
_ And now you've found your way out_  
_ In the trust you've seen your path on home_.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, I know this chapter is short... I'm really sorry. Sorry that it took so long to post, too. the next one is longer, I promise.

So yeah, tell me what you think. I know that Seto gets a little OOC, but I can't seem to make things work.

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

thanks for reading!


	11. Chapter 11: Three Evils

(I own nothing)

* * *

~Chapter Eleven: Three Evils (Embodied in Love and Shadow)~

* * *

_Across the floor in the hand of where we drove the drill_  
_ A cautious ear to the mouth of your confession_  
_ Think of all the things we put him through_  
_ In the face of his god would he tell the truth?

* * *

_

Although I was reluctant to see Yami leave, he reminded me that we, as seniors, had less than a week left of school. Four days? Yeah, I could handle that. Apparently, though, I had failed to take into consideration just how long four days could be. We didn't really get to see each other much, even after school on those days, because they were exam days, and Yami insisted on spending the evenings studying. That was probably for the best, as it gave me a chance to get things back in order with the company, but I still wasn't too happy about it. Fortunately, Marik and Bakura had healed very quickly and were able to attend school (although they weren't exactly thrilled about that). Then, finally, we were done with our last two exams and dismissed from school. I hurried to find Yami, but sadly, he wasn't the only one I found.

"Yeah, so then, we can go to... Ryou's house, because he has a pool," the mutt was explaining, "and his dad is off in Egypt or somewhere like that."

"Actually, he's at a dig site in Istanbul," Ryou corrected him, but the stupid mutt just ignored him.

"Yeah. So who's coming? All of us, and- oh, shit. Not you," he whined when he caught sight of me. He stuck his tongue out with distaste (and people say I'm immature?).

"Seto!" Yami smiled brightly at me, a smile that I couldn't resist returning. Hey, at least someone was happy to see me... "Hey," he said to me while Yugi chastised his blond friend for being so retarded (by which I mean rude). "Listen. They're having a little get-together thing at Ryou's house tonight..." Uh oh. I could see where this was going, and I didn't like it. "...and Yugi really wants me to go. He says I don't get out enough. Please don't leave me to face them all alone?" Despite his wording, I could tell that he actually kind of wanted to go. As much as I dreaded the thought of spending any free time with the rest of them at all, especially voluntarily, I didn't want Yami to miss out on having fun with his friends because of my angry, antisocial ass.

"We'll see," I conceded. "But I won't like it!" I added, as Yami hugged me tightly.

"Ugh, Yami," the moron commented, making a sour face. "That's disgusting. I dunno how you put up with him." I was about to snap back at him, but his pointy-headed friend beat me to it.

"Jounouchi Katsuya!" he hissed, surprising everyone. "Would you just shut the fuck up about Yami's love life and choice of a significant other?" The mutt looked dumbfounded.

"Huh?" Honda threw his hands in the air.

"I really _really _don't know how _I_ put up with _you_ half the time! You have no room to talk!" He stormed off, calling back a quick 'see ya' to the rest of the group.

"Shit," muttered a red-faced mutt before bounding off after the conehead.

"Just a bloody second... did he mean 'put up with' as in...?" Ryou voiced the question on everyone's mind. Anzu smiled excitedly, but Bakura just scoffed at her.

"What're you so happy about? At this rate, you're never gonna get laid- all your friends are gay." Well, that was pretty blunt... I approved. Anzu glared at Bakura.

" Well excuse _me,_ Bakura! Maybe I don't hang around with all guys just because I want to get laid! Did you ever think of that?!" Bakura looked like the concept was totally foreign to him.

"Huh. Are you a lesbian?"

"Oh, my God! You're hopeless, you know that?!" she shouted, before she, too, left the group.

"She totally is," Bakura muttered, a smug expression on his face.

"Oh, come on, you moron." Ryou tugged at his yami's sleeve. "We need to tidy up a bit if everyone is going to be dropping in later."

The rest of us departed after that, Yami promising to meet me at my house in a few hours. I've never really paid much attention about what I wear, as long as I look presentable. That afternoon, though, I had a hell of a time. I wanted to look nice, obviously, but I also didn't want to overdo it. After all, no point in giving the mutt and company any more reason to make fun of me. Eventually, after much painstaking deliberation, I realized that there was nothing else for it: I reached back (waaay back) into my dresser, rummaging around until I found the one pair of jeans that I owned. The tags were still attached, and I prayed that they still fit. Fortunately, they did, and they were actually pretty comfortable once I got them on. I settled for just a normal, button-up shirt (like always), and I managed to locate the one pair of tennis shoes (tags also still attached) that I had; Mokuba had forced me to buy them for something, although I never ended up wearing them.

"Seto!" Mokuba shouted from the other room. "Yami's here!" Fuck yeah! I started to head out there to meet him, but ran into him halfway. I pretty much stared at him like a moron. He looked... most excellent (but what else is new, right?). If a stranger saw him walking on the street, even without knowing anything about him, they would know without a doubt that he was gay, but it worked for him. He also wore jeans, although his were much tighter, like his t-shirt, accenting every contour of his body. His shirt was a v-neck, which showed off the choker he wore (like always) and the small, golden scarab beetle pendant hanging from a fine gold chain. He had put on eyeliner, or kohl, or whatever the fuck you want to call it, making his already bright eyes stand out even more. He had a matching scarab clip holding his bangs away from his face on one side, while they cascaded over the other side of his face. He held a pendant, identical to his own, out to me.

"If you're finished gawking, then take this. It's for you." I blushed at having been caught acting like a moron, but took the pendant. It was beautiful, I'll admit that.

"Why..." He put a finger over my lips, taking it away from me again.

"Here," he murmured, putting his arms around my neck and fastening the thin chain. "There you go. How's that?"

"But why are you giving this to me?"

"Oh, relax. It always belonged to you, anyway. In the box that held the pieces of the millennium puzzle, there was a tiny compartment in the bottom that could only be opened by me. I've been waiting 3000 years to give you that, so don't lose it." He reached up to kiss me, while I stuttered out a thanks. "Eh, don't worry about it." His eyes widened when they finally took in my full attire, and I shifted self-consciously. "Hey! You _do_ own a pair of jeans! You should wear them more; you look nice."

"Don't count on it; this is my only pair, and I have no intention of buying another."

"Yeah, well, we'll see about that, now won't we?" I didn't like that tone. "So you got your bathing suit?" I laughed.

"Fuck no. I'm not swimming."

He raised an eyebrow at me. "Even so, you'd better bring one, because somehow, I get the feeling that by the end of the night, someone will have thrown you in the pool. And trust me, you won't enjoy wearing wet jeans."

"Shit, what are you, turning into Isis?"

He laughed. "No. I just know them better than you, and I know that they'll be drunk enough to think that fucking with you is a good idea." I groaned, not having considered that possibility.

"Well, that really sucks, because I don't even have one that fits," I told him truthfully.

"Which is what I thought you'd say, so I brought this just in case." He tossed a wadded-up pair of swim trunks at me. I shook my head.

"Yami, you are something else, you know that?"

"Oh? And is that good?"

"Most definitely. Now let's get going. The sooner we go, the sooner we're done."

* * *

To my surprise, Mokuba didn't go. He'd been invited, of course, but he said that he still had finals to study for, so he wanted to stay home. Somehow, I think there was more to it than that- like something involving a girl. We took one of my nicer cars (hey, I can show off a little if I want, can't I?) and arrived at Ryou's house just before sunset. It was a nice house, I guess, despite the fact that I really didn't want to be there. My misgivings only deepened as we knocked and Yugi let us in (he had gone over there hours ago to help set up).

"Don't get in Ryou's way," he warned us before we even set foot inside, flinching as a loud crash sounded from somewhere in the house, followed by a very angry British voice.

"You bloody moron! What in the name of God do you think you're doing?! Get out of here! Go! Bloody hell, go break something somewhere else!" A very frazzled-looking Bakura hurried through the door, cursing under his breath.

"What in Ra's name is going on here?" Yami asked quietly. Bakura shrugged and rolled his eyes.

"Fuck if I know. He's trying to get snacks and drinks and shit ready for later. He wouldn't let me have any more beer until people got here." His face brightened. "Hey, you idiots are guests, aren't you? Maybe since company's here, he'll chill out and let me..."

"Eh..." Yugi looked at him sympathetically. "I wouldn't try it if I were you, Bakura..." The thief's shoulders slumped.

"Yeah, you're probably right. Fuck, I could use a few more."

"A few more? Bakura, how many have you already had?" Yami asked in disbelief.

"I dunno. Five or six."

"And you're totally coherent?" I asked him.

He smirked at me. "What's the matter, priest? Can't hold your liquor?"

I blushed. Actually, I hadn't had much experience with alcohol, and all past experiences hadn't exactly been good. I was saved by a loud knock on the door, which Yugi again answered, admitting Marik and Malik. Marik and Bakura slunk off somewhere together (which, I'll admit, made me slightly nervous), and Malik went to help Ryou in the kitchen, despite Yugi's warnings. I was feeling pretty out of place at first, but by the time the entire friendship brigade had arrived, it was mostly dark. Ryou finally surfaced from the kitchen, shouting shrilly until everyone moved to the back patio. I was actually pretty impressed with the whole setup out back. It was clear that it had been specifically designed to entertain large groups of people. After grabbing some snacks and, at Bakura's insistence, drinks, Yami and I went to sit in one of the wicker loveseats. It was admittedly pretty funny, watching as everyone progressively became more and more intoxicated throughout the night. The conehead had arrived, and was deliberately ignoring the mutt, who was following him around like...well, like a lost puppy. A few times, Bakura or Marik offered us drinks, but we politely declined in favor of getting our _own_ (and hopefully not spiked) drinks. Beer never really was my thing, but some of the liquor they had was actually pretty decent. I wondered which poor liquor store Bakura had robbed, as the majority of the brands were fairly expensive. Yami pretty much forced me into the swim trunks (stop trying to interpret that sexually), which was fortunate, because not long after, a drunken mutt and conehead (apparently the alcohol had made them forget about their previous disagreement) decided that I "needed to have more fun." Obviously, their idea of fun differed vastly from mine, as I did not at all enjoy being forced into cold, heavily chlorinated water with a group of people whom I more or less despise, but I was feeling a bit too unsteady on my feet myself to resist. Plus, Yami joined me in the water, which just about made everything better. Fuck, he looked good in the water, without a shirt on... Bakura and Marik were, by this point, pretty much lost to the world. Bakura was laying on the ground laughing hysterically at who knows what, and a rather distraught Malik was trying to prevent Marik from discarding his pants (see?! What did I tell you?! That guy loves to strip!).

"You okay there, Seto?" Yami asked, giggling a little as we helped each other out of the pool.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be okay? Hey. I like you a lot."

I don't really know why I felt the need to state the obvious, but Yami seemed to appreciate it, as he pretty much tackled me onto the wet pavement. I felt my back scrape against the ground, and somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that it would hurt quite a bit later. In that state, though, I couldn't really tell what hurt and what didn't, and I just clung to Yami for dear life. He kissed me- and kept kissing me, until Ryou told us (less-than-politely) to "go fuck on someone else's lawn," which totally wasn't fair, because we weren't even really doing anything yet. Even so, we managed to get to a different loveseat, where we collapsed on top of each other, laughing like idiots. This loveseat happened to be (conveniently) located right next to the drink table, which in retrospect probably wasn't such a great idea. I decided to see what I could come up with, and I discovered that by mixing the apple flavored liquor with the lemonade, it tasted amazing and didn't burn going down. I think that's what did me in. I enjoyed it a lot more than I probably should have... I remember being really attached to Yami, and telling anyone who came close enough to hear me just how much I liked him, and how awesome he was. Then, for some reason, I got really concerned that Yami was going to up and leave me, so I hugged him really tightly, making sure that he wasn't going anywhere.

Things got a little hazy after that, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up, freezing cold, uncomfortable, and sopping wet. My head was throbbing, and I struggled to figure out where I was. Finally, I realized that I was laying on a bathroom floor. Apparently I was still very concerned about losing Yami, because I sat up quickly.

"Yami! Urghh..." I felt like I was dying, and I lay back down until my surroundings stopped spinning.

"Seto, it's okay," Yami mumbled from somewhere to my left. I reached blindly in that direction until I came in contact with Yami's arm. I moaned weakly, and he crawled over to me. "How do you feel?"

"Like death," I whispered, wanting to just go curl up and die.

"I'm sorry... I don't really know what to tell you. Come on let's get you into something dry before you catch a cold." He pushed something soft into my hands, and then helped me change into the pants, because I refused to open my eyes.

"Why..." I lost my train of thought as he helped me to my feet. "You're okay."

"I didn't have as much to drink as you do, and apparently, alcohol doesn't affect us yamis like it does normal people. Which is good, because I'm driving us home." I wasn't exactly sure what he was talking about, but that was perfectly fine with me. We made our way to the kitchen (after I puked a few times), where Yami, being as awesome as ever, had the foresight to grab a couple of garbage bags, so that I didn't puke all over the car. As he helped me stumble around like a zombie, we ran into the conehead and the mutt, lying in a heap on the floor. They groaned as we went by, but then the mutt lifted his head to look at me.

"Hey, man, Kaiba, you okay, man?" I stared at him blankly.

"Jou, not right now," Yami told him softly, and he shrugged, laying his head back down. When we got out into the garage, we saw that Bakura was leaning against the garage door frame, while Marik sat on the pavement, cradling Malik's head in his lap. He glanced up at us momentarily, stroking his sleeping hikari's forehead, nodding to us in greeting. I couldn't place his expression, but it wasn't one that I was used to seeing.

"Later," Bakura told us. "Take it easy, there, priest," he said to me, and for whatever reason, he sounded sincere. And... concerned? What was going on? "Hey, pharaoh..." Bakura's eyes shot quickly between my face and Yami's. "Lemme talk to you real quick, okay?" Yami, to my surprise, nodded.

"Alright. Just let me get him to the car." He got me settled into the passenger's seat, buckled, with my trash bag open in front of me and the window rolled down so that I could breathe. "I'll be right back, okay?" I grunted, closing my eyes tightly against the rising sun that made my head throb. He could have told me that he was going to kill me with an ice pick, and I think my reaction would have been the same. He went back to where Bakura was, and they talked for a few minutes, although they spoke too quietly for me to hear them. They kept glancing at me, though, which made me a little uncomfortable. Whatever. Yami came back soon, and drove me home, where I proceeded to lay around moaning miserably and puking up everything I'd eaten in the last day or so. I swore to kill whomever it was who had invented alcohol (disregard the fact that alcohol has been around for thousands of years. Inconsequential details). Finally, after wasting an entire day, my head had cleared up enough to form a coherent thought.

"What time is it?" I muttered, finally leaving to bathroom to join Yami in my room.

"Hey there, feeling any better?"

"Minimally," I muttered. "Again, what time is it?"

"Oh, about five in the afternoon."

"Fuck." I let that sink in for a moment, before asking Yami the question that had been on my mind for the last few hours. "So... Yami, what exactly did I do last night?" He froze, dropping the pencil that he'd been using to fill in the crossword.

"W-what do you mean?"

"You, Bakura, Marik, and the mutt were acting weird. What the fuck did I do?" He shifted uncomfortably.

"Well... it's not so much what you did... um... more of what you said..." He stopped, stalling.

"Was it really that bad?" I whispered, sitting down on the bed weakly. He nodded, his expression grim, coming to sit beside me. He took my hand, studying it for a few moments, before speaking.

"You... you started crying, for one thing." Shit. I only ever cried when Yami almost died, and... no. Absolutely not. I wouldn't have said anything about that, right? "You were crying and holding on to me, and then you-" He swallowed, averting his gaze. "You kept telling me not to let 'him' near you, or near Mokuba. And then you started telling me- but everyone else was around- about... um..." Shit shit shit! "About... things that he made you do, and things he'd done to you..." No. I was numb. I closed my eyes, laying back on the bed. No, no, no.

"Yami?" I croaked. "How much did I say?" He didn't answer. "How bad was it?"

"...Bad." He didn't speak after that, for which I was grateful. I couldn't handle trying to converse with him..with trying to explain myself. My God, what had I done? I'd told... everyone. My biggest secret, my deepest shame... exposed. I pulled my hand away from Yami's, laying on my side, back turned towards him.

"Seto?" he whispered. I couldn't turn to face him. I didn't want him to see me right then.

"I'm sorry," I muttered and he ran his hand comfortingly along my side.

"Seto, it's okay," he whispered sadly. "Don't get too upset..." Well, this was just fucking unbelievable. I turned to face him.

"Don't get too upset?! Really?! Why the fuck shouldn't I get upset?! Everyone knows about- about that!" I spat out. Yami didn't flinch in the slightest, despite the anger in my voice.

"No, Seto. Not everyone knows. Don't lose rationality." Gods, he was right, but even so... "Only the people there last night know. Not all of them will remember what happened, and Seto, I know you don't like them, but they aren't bad people. They won't use it against you, and they won't breathe a word about it to anyone else. I promise." Logically, I knew all of that, but fuck logic. I was on the edge of a full-blown freakout. I covered my head with my arms, wishing that I could just disappear.

"Fuck, Yami," I choked out.

"I know, Seto. I know. It will be okay, but... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked you to go with me... you didn't want to in the first place-" What, so now he was trying to blame himself? Stupid pharaoh.

"Yami, shut the fuck up. In no way is this your fault that I'm a fucked up moron." He looked close to tears at this point, but managed to smile at me.

"I don't think you're a fucked up moron."

"Well, thanks for the encouragement, but I beg to differ. In case you didn't hear me last night, I am pretty damn fucked up. And you know what Freud said about childhood experiences and their effect on the personality. According to Freudian psychology, I'm as fucked up as they come." Hey, one of my top classes was psychology. Which made sense, I guess; it was always the psychologists and psychiatrists that had the fucked up family lives.

"But Seto, what you fail to realize is that Freud was a total nutcase." Touche, Yami. Touche. "Besides, it's not like _any_ of that was your fault."

"Shit, Yami. How much did I tell you?" His gaze fell to the floor, and I decided that I was probably better off not knowing. "Never mind. I don't even want to know, do I?" He shook his head fervently. "Okay then. Just forget it." His eyes met mine, full of sadness.

"Seto, I can never forget something like that. I'm sorry, but I love you more than anything, and I want you to know that none of that matters. None of it changes how I feel about you in the slightest." I tried to smile at him, but it was pretty much just a pained grimace. Apparently, that had been bothering me more than I'd known, because I felt a sudden wave of relief as I wrapped my arms around him.

"Gods, Yami. I love you too. So much. Sorry for being so complicated." He kissed my forehead sweetly.

"What fun would it be if you weren't complicated? I like a challenge. After all, I'm the king of games..." We laughed about that, but my head started hurting again, and I convinced him that it was time for bed. He didn't agree, but but he did accompany me, bringing with him the crossword puzzle from earlier and a book. I clung to him as I fell asleep at 5:30 in the afternoon, listening to his gentle breathing. I didn't let go of him until morning.

* * *

_Slowly discarded were the remains of his lonely youth_  
_ Among the alley where the dwellers scare to notice_  
_ Picture a young boy in pieces and streets with leveled malfunctions_  
_ No name to be called redeemer_  
_ We'll fix him restore him...with the love is no other_  
_ Think of all the things you did before_  
_ Write them in a letter that says reborn._

* * *

A/N: So... yeah. Kind of a special chapter, I realize... sorry if you don't like it, but I would still really appreciate feedback. some parts are a little corny, and I apologize... it just sort of happened. I apologize sooo much for the OOCness that seems to permeate this chapter. although I like how Bakura and Marik turned out. can't you see Marik trying to take his clothes off? (and if you can't see him doing that, wouldn't you like to? ;D )

~so I am not condoning underage drinking, but hey, it happens. and just so you all know, the bit about the apple flavored liquor and the lemonade comes from personal experience. 99 Apples and Minute Maid lemonade... :) although, funny story: the last time I partook in alcohol, it was me, my boyfriend, and one of our other friends. our friend's parents own a liquor store, so he got a bottle of this rum called.... Kraken, I think. it had a cool bottle. ANYWAY, basically, Pat and I teamed up on Andrew (my boyfriend) and took his pants off, because I decided that he needed to be in his pajamas. don't worry, that was all we did to him. ;) although Pat one time got really drunk and started telling everyone about the sixties, and how awesome the sixties were. not that he was around until the early nineties, but that's beside the point.

~Also, I'm not trying to say that all psychiatrists are fucked up. it just seems that lots of them have messed up families. like my aunt- she's got her doctorate in psychology, and all 3 of her kids are very messed up, and I have a few friends whose parents have backgrounds in psychology, and, well, obviously they have some problems, b/c they're friends with me.

I love this song. it sounds really happy, until you actually listen to the lyrics. then it gets a little fucked up. oh well. it's still great. of course, it's Coheed and Cambria, so it's always awesome.

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

thanks for reading!!!!! I really really appreciate everyone's reviews. :) also, thanks to Akane. I wish I could reply to your reviews, but you aren't logged in!!! so thank you; your reviews truly make my day when I get them. to the extent that I was on the phone with my beta and I read it to her. :D

(my next chapter is probably going to be a lemon... *shame*)


	12. Chapter 12: The Faint of Hearts

(I don't own anything)

**LEMON.** just warning you.

* * *

~Chapter Twelve: The Faint of Hearts~

* * *

_The sin that shapes your voice carries, my ears, this new disease._

_

* * *

_

I avoided the whole group (other than Yami) for as long as I could-which, with my shitty luck, wasn't very long.

"Yo! Kaiba!" Dammit, it was the mutt. Just who I wanted to see (note the sarcasm)!

"Hello, mutt. What do you want?" I snapped, instantly knowing that I should have _never_ let Mokuba drag me here with him, no matter what he needed.

"Ouch, jeez. I was just gonna ask if ya needed any help or anything like that. I do work here, ya know."

"No. I'm only here because Mokuba needed to get something for his project." Why the fuck had I let him drag me along? I never go to the hardware store; I hate it.

"Well, what did he need? Maybe I can help ya out." Highly doubtful. I shrugged, nodding stiffly in the direction that Mokuba had gone, hoping that the mutt would take the hint and get away from me. I should have known better.

"Now what do you want?" I snapped when he made it obvious that he wasn't going anywhere. He looked down, scratching the back of his head nervously.

"Well... um, dunno. I just... I prolly shouldn't have said some of the stuff I said about ya before... ya know." No. Fucking. Way. The mutt was apologizing? To me, of all people?

"Look, if you're just apologizing, being nice, whatever, because of what I said the other night, then-"

"Woah, Kaiba. Calm down, that ain't it. Okay? I'm just sayin' that I said some shit about you before, and it wasn't fair. I mean, I seen how you act with Yami, how nice you are and how good you treat him... and what with how you are about Mokuba- well, you can't be a total dick. And you know... I shouldn't of said all that stuff, so sorry." I stared at him, my mouth hanging open. Maybe he wasn't a complete ass after all...

"Well... that was unexpected... um... thank you, mutt." I smirked at him, and he laughed cheerfully.

"Big brother! I'm done! Hey, Jou!" Mokuba glanced back and forth between the two of us nervously, as if afraid that we would leap at each other's throats any second.

"Here," the mutt offered. "I'll check you guys out." Jou rang up the stuff that Mokuba had picked out. "So I'll see you guys later then, okay?" He waved at Mokuba, nodding towards me as we left.

"So what the hell was that all about?" Mokuba asked as soon as we were out of the store.

"What was what about?"

"You and Jou talking without trying to kill each other." Oh, that.

"I dunno." I shrugged. "He was actually being a decent human for once."

"Huh. Never thought I'd live to see the day that you and Jou would make up..."

"Oh, you shut up. It was a one-time thing. Besides, I didn't say that I liked him. Just that he was being halfway tolerable." I glanced at him, and saw that he was smirking at me oddly. "What?"

"Oh, I dunno." He shrugged, his actions over-exaggerated. "You've been acting a lot more... open, and carefree, since you and Yami got together. It's nice; you need to have fun once in a while." I wasn't really sure what to say, and so the ride lapsed into silence. We got home to find that someone had let themselves in.

"Hey, Mokuba! Oh, hi, Kaiba!" **S****igh**. Yes, there was a spiky, tri-colored head of hair, but it wasn't the one that I had been hoping to see.

"Hey Yugi!" Mokuba shouted, ecstatic to see his friend. "But I thought you said Yami was coming with you?" What? Yami? Where?!

Yugi laughed. "Well, it looks like _that_ got someone's attention..." I glared at him. "But yeah. He's here somewhere..." The wide grin on his face told me that he not only knew where Yami was, he was up to something. "You should probably go find him... and Mokuba, you and I should probably get out of here, _**if you know what I mean**_." Mokuba giggled as Yugi wiggled his eyebrows at him. Damn that midget!

"Okay, you just shut up." I glared at the pair as they dashed outside. "And close the door behind you!" Now to find Yami. Yeah, it didn't really take a genius (although I am one, I might add) to find him, sprawled on my bed with a book and wearing a pair of shorts that looked like they might be Anzu's and a tightly-fitting tank top.

"Seto!" He sat up excitedly as I entered the room.

"Well, what a surprise," I said sarcastically. "What brings you here on this fine day?" I sat next to him on the bed.

"Oh, I'm pretty sure you know exactly why I'm here," he countered, helping me take my shirt off. "Hey! You're wearing it!" he exclaimed upon seeing the scarab necklace that he'd given me. I could see his tucked under his shirt.

"Well of course I'm wearing it. Didn't you expect me to?" He pulled me closer, catching my lips in a deep kiss.

"Did Yugi and Mokuba leave?" I nodded, and he grinned. "Good!" He pulled me down on the bed, then pushed me backwards so that I was laying on the bed, him on his knees over me.

"And what do you think you're doing?" I asked him, jokingly.

"What do you think I'm doing?"

"I'm pretty sure that's my spot." Heh, if he thought he was going to top... well, I guess if he really wanted to, I would probably let him, but still...

"No, it isn't. I'm the pharaoh."

"You can't use the whole pharaoh card every single time, you know."

He grinned at me. "Sure I can. Now be quiet and help me here." Without giving me a chance to protest, he kissed me, breaking the kiss just long enough to pull his shirt over his head. He was sitting on my waist now, and it was making certain... _things_ rather uncomfortable.

"Move," I growled, pulling the covers over us. He began unbuttoning my pants, and I felt like I was a spectator. I couldn't make myself do anything other than just watch in fascination as his long fingers moved across the fabric, up to my abdomen and chest, and then cupping my face. He stared straight into my eyes.

"Seto, I love you," he whispered.

"I love you, too..." I murmured, slightly in awe of how fucking _beautiful_ he was. He helped me get my pants the rest of the way off (and vice-versa), him straddling my waist as he planted kisses all along my jaw line and collarbone. The way he was moving slightly against me, rhythmically back-and-forth was preventing my brain from actually functioning properly. "Y-Yami," I muttered into his kisses as I tried to sit up.

He pushed me back down, though, whispering to me, "Just wait a moment." He reached over the side of the bed, but I couldn't see what he had found over there. I didn't need to see it, as it turns out; I jumped slightly as I felt his hands on me, spreading what I assumed was lube everywhere it would be needed. I tried to sit up again, but he shoved me back. "Seto, knock that off. Don't move," he demanded, giving me his most severe look (although he should know better than to try to out-glare a Kaiba).

"Fine, fine." Then he lifted himself up so that he was directly above me. Wait, was he going to... "Y-Yami? What- nnngghh..." All rational thought disappeared when he slowly lowered himself down onto me. His eyes were clenched tightly closed, and he was biting his lip. I managed to keep almost perfectly still, until he opened his eyes. "Y-Yami, are you okay?"

"More or less... I will be in a minute," he whispered, and I could tell that he was in pain.

"Shh, come here." I tugged on his arm, pulling his body closer to mine so that I could kiss him. He clung tightly to my shoulders, and after a minute or so, he seemed to relax. "Better?"

He nodded. "Yes," he hissed. "Now move." Well, I couldn't ignore a direct order from the pharaoh, now could I? I propped myself up on the pillows so that I had better leverage, and began slowly rocking the two of us back and forth. It was an interesting angle... and a good one at that. Yami seemed to agree, at any rate, if the sounds he was making were any indication. He helped me with our rhythm, using his legs to help both steady him and move with me. I held Yami as close to my body as I could, our chests pressed together and his head resting on my shoulder. Each time I thrust into him, he made soft cries of pleasure, which just fueled me on even more.

"S-Seto..." he whispered my name, pulling away just enough to look into my eyes, still moving in sync with my body. I kissed him softly, trying to convey just how much I loved him through that one action alone. He pulled me into the kiss even more, responding with a fervor that was just as much gentle affection as it was lust. Almost without realizing it, we both increased the tempo, our movements becoming more frantic and less controlled, until finally, with a cry of ecstasy, Yami came. He clutched at my shoulders and back, his nails digging in almost painfully as I came a moment later, Yami's name hissing past my lips. We held each other tightly for several minutes after, catching our breath and just reveling in the closeness.

"Yami," I whispered to him, as we sank into the covers, nestling against each other. "I love you. Don't ever forget that."

"I love you, too. I couldn't forget it; not after 3000 years of remembering and hoping... and waiting." I felt sort of bad about that last bit, and it must have been apparent. "Don't worry, Seto. I would wait forever if I had to." I had to agree as I kissed him again.

"Me, too." I truly meant it. I stroked his hair, smoothing it away from his now sticky forehead. Within moments, he was asleep. I smiled, content to just be with the one I loved.

_But I don't want to sleep without, so I bid to you, goodnight,_  
_ tonight, sleep tight, my love._

_

* * *

_A/N: Short chapter, I know. Sorry. Also, very sorry that it took me so long. I have been procrastinating on this like crazy, mainly because I don't like writing lemons, and then Krista and I totally forgot that I sent it to her to beta. I know it's not very good... I have a tough time. pleh. I will most definitely try to be faster with the next chapter... like maybe get started earlier, so that I don't have to force myself to sit down and write the entire lemon in one sitting. plus, then my cat came and tried to sit on the pillow next to my head, and I couldn't write a lemon with her watching. I just couldn't do it.

so my mom found out about the third rat!! She knew about Phoebe and Ren (RIP Fannie), but she didn't know about Raissa until my dad said, totally casually, "so, I see there are three rats up there now." He didn't care, and he didn't know that my mom didn't know. I sat there not saying anything while my mom glared at me for like 2 minutes, and then I said, "yeah, there have been for a few months now..." and she looked really angry, and said "alex, get up there and make sure your room is damn clean." and that was about it. she likes Raissa, but she wasn't too happy with me.

the song for this chapter is "The Velorium Camper I: The Faint of Hearts." It's a good song. actually pretty happy sounding. I had a hard time finding lyrics that fit this chapter, because this is a mostly happy chapter, and not many of Coheed's songs are very cheerful, and I already know what song I want for next chapter. :D OMFG I'm so excited about the new CD, Year of the Black Rainbow. Cheerful name, eh? ;)

Yeah, let me know what you think. I love getting reviews, and I love reading what you have to say. thanks for all your support!

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

OOOOOOHHHHH, so the next chapter is going to be the last one!!! *cries* I know, it's quite sad.

thank you for reading!!!

~alex~


	13. Chapter 13: Junesong Provision

(I own nothing)

A/N: Oh lord! This is the last chapter!!!! Wait, how did this happen? Well, enjoy!

* * *

~Chapter 13: Junesong Provision~

* * *

_Good morning, sunshine, awake when the sun hits the sky._

_

* * *

_

I woke before Yami did, holding perfectly still so that I didn't wake him. Unfortunately, the brief moment of peaceful silence didn't last, as my phone made its presence known. Yami groaned as he rolled over, covering his head with a pillow. I sighed, reaching for the troublesome thing.

"What?" I snapped, my voice still hoarse from sleep.

"Well, good morning to you too," Shelly responded. I rubbed my eyes.

"Sorry. But why are you calling me?"

"Aww, come on. You don't want to talk to me just for the hell of it?" Alright, yeah, I knew she was messing with me, but that didn't mean I had to go along with it.

"No."

"Ouch. Well, I was just calling to remind you that you have a meeting later today. And by the sounds of things, it's a good thing I called. You do realize that it's almost noon?" I sat up in alarm.

"What?! How did that happen?"

"Late night?" I smirked; I could make this uncomfortable. Yeah, so I'm a little evil. Oh well.

"You have _no_ idea." She laughed.

"Actually, yeah I do." Huh? How... "I ran into Yugi and Mokuba earlier today. They apparently were too traumatized to stay in the same house as you two..." Those little brats!

"It wasn't that bad!" I shouted, only realizing the implication of my words once they were out of my mouth. I hoped that Shelly might let it slide, but to no avail.

"No, I'm sure it wasn't bad at all."

"Okay, you can shut up. What time is the meeting?" I heard a rustling of papers as she double-checked.

"It's at three-thirty. You'd better get your ass in gear. Or is it too sore?" That bitch!

"Of course it isn't, you sick pervert!" Oops, I guess I must have been a little too loud; Yami was starting to stir.

"Sorry. I should have known, you wouldn't be on the bottom, would you?" I gritted my teeth.

"Shelly, if you know what's good for you, you'll shut the hell up right now." She laughed at me. She fucking _laughed_ at _Seto Kaiba._

"And if you know what's good for you, you'll get in here right now." Hey, I'm the boss, not her! "You've missed far too much work as of late to skip this," she warned, pretty much reading my mind.

"Damn you."

"You just don't like it when I'm right and you're wrong." Hey, now.

"I'm never wrong."

"Yeah, just keep telling yourself that."

"Shut up!"

"No. Not until you get out of bed." How did she think she could order me around?

"I am out of bed, you insufferable woman!" She giggled at my rising anger.

"No you aren't. Don't try to pull that; I'm too smart for that." Dammit, how the fuck did she know? "I'll leave you alone, just get your ass in here as soon as you can. You have some stuff to catch up on before the meeting." Fuck, she was right. I sighed.

"Alright, I'll be there." She laughed triumphantly, hanging up on me without so much as a goodbye. Not that I would have returned the farewell, but that's not even the point here, now is it?

"What was that all about?" A tired voice asked from my left. I turned to see Yami watching me lazily, his red eyes still half-closed as he stretched.

"Eh. Business meeting. I have to leave..." His expression fell. "Yami, don't give me that look!" I pleaded. "It's not like I'll be gone forever!" He smiled somewhat ruefully.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to guilt you. Although..." he looked at me meaningfully, but I didn't know what he was trying to get at.

"What?"

"When will you be done?" I shrugged.

"I don't know exactly. Maybe around five or so?" He sighed dramatically, closing his eyes.

"I guess I'll survive until then..." He peeked one eye open to see my expression, and burst into fits of giggles. I rolled my eyes.

"You need to go back to sleep. You're clearly giddy." He shook his head, wrapping his arms around my torso.

"Nope. I'm perfectly normal right now. See what you're stuck with?"

"Hey, it's better than being stuck without it." I kissed him, standing up regretfully. "I'm sorry, I have to get going, or Shelly will murder me."

"No!" He gasped in mock horror. "I don't want you to die again," he said, only partially kidding this time. "You should probably go then... I'll see you later though, okay?" I nodded.

"Will you be here?"

"Maybe. Trust me, I'll see you later." I could tell that he was planning something, and that kinda made me a little curious. Okay, it made me curious as hell, but I was far too proud to beg him to tell me, like some sort of whiny brat. Or like Mokuba, not that he _was _a whiny brat (most of the time), I'm just saying.

* * *

Dear god, is everyone in the business world (except myself, of course) a total moron?! I'm beginning to think so, if that business meeting was anything to go by. I walked out of the conference room, swearing quietly under my breath.

"Well, sounds like that went well," Shelly commented when she saw me. I glared at her.

"Don't even get me started." She laughed.

"Hey, don't worry. I think your mood will improve very quickly." I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Oh? And what does that mean?" She shrugged her shoulders, a smug look on her face.

"I don't know... why don't you go downstairs and see for yourself?" Stupid goddamn secretaries. Would it really have been that hard to just tell me what was going on? I shot her one last glare, to which she responded by giving me her most innocent smile, and then headed to the elevator. When the doors opened to let me out on the ground floor, I instantly forgave any obnoxious on Shelly's part.

"Hey, Seto!"

"Hey, Yami. Why... are you here?" That kind of sounded bad, didn't it? Like I didn't want him there. I did want him there though, and he seemed to know it.

"I came to pick you up!" He exclaimed, smiling brightly. I glanced outside, and sure enough, the limo wasn't there. He took my hand and led me to a black car in the parking lot (to be honest, I don't even remember owning one like that) and sat me down in the passenger's seat.

"Where are we going?"

"Shut up. I'm kidnapping you."

"Hey, it's Mokuba's job, not mine, to get kidnapped," I joked.

"Yeah, well, we're switching it up today. Now do I need to blindfold you, or can I trust you to keep your eyes closed until we get there?"

"Why can't I see where we're going?" I wasn't liking the idea of not knowing where I was.

"Because," he said, rolling his eyes as he started up the car. "It's a surprise. Ever heard of one of those?"

"Of course I have," I huffed, "But I don't like them. Besides, you can't make me wear a blindfold."

"Wanna bet?" I then noticed the faint black and purple glow that was coming from his skin.

"You wouldn't..."

"Yes, I would, and you know it." Yeah, he was right. Now are you gonna keep your eyes closed?"

"Fine," I sighed angrily, clenching my eyes shut. "How long is it going to take us to get there?"

"Oh, relax, Mr. Impatient. It's not that far away." About five minutes passed like that, the car filled with our friendly banter. "Okay, now don't open your eyes yet," Yami instructed as he stopped the car and got out, opening the door for me. I sighed again; I was getting really sick of being blind. He took me by the hand and led me somewhere indoors, almost forgetting to warn me about the step (although he might have done that on purpose, just to pick on me). "Just a second... just a second... okay. You can open them now!!" I did just that, and immediately, a huge smile broke out across my face. "So? What do you think?" He asked me as I watched the fish swimming in the huge tank in front of me. I turned and kissed him softly, loving the way he blushed at such an innocent touch.

"I think that you're the sweetest, most amazing person I know," I told him as we watched a bicolor parrotfish swim past us.

"Heh, don't tell Mokuba that."

"You know he doesn't count." He raised an eyebrow at me.

"He's not a person?"

"You _know_ that's not what I meant." He smiled at me, and I wondered how it was possible that, the last time I had been here, standing in front of this very tank with Yami, that I had thought he was obnoxious and annoying (okay, he was obnoxious sometimes butwas part of what I liked about him).

"Come on, let's go look at the rest of the fish." I held his hand tightly the entire time, which earned us a couple of strange looks, along with one or two pleased smiles. Damn straight, they were smiling at us. We were the best (and best looking) goddamn couple in all of Domino. Or anywhere, for that matter.

By the time we had looked at all the exhibits, the sun had begun to set. I have to admit, I was staring at Yami like... well, like he was the most beautiful thing in the world, which he is (shut up, I know it sounds corny). The way the sunlight was deeper, more red than usual, reminded me of the way he had looked in my memories (not just dreams now; things were still coming back to me, slowly) of Egypt, the two of us watching the sun set from across the desert. I stared for a little too long, though, because he looked at me strangely.

"What's the matter, Seto?" He asked, his fingers still laced through mine.

"Nothing," I assured him, brushing his bangs back from his face. He leaned into my hand, so that I was cupping his cheek. He looked at me, and the sun reflected the brilliant red of his eyes, making it look like they were glowing. Who knows, maybe they were glowing. That millennium thing of his does strange things sometimes. I cleared my throat, slightly nervous at what I had, spur-of-the-moment, decided to ask him. "Yami..." I paused, uncertain. Yeah, don't rub it in, okay? But seriously, this was a pretty big deal (like myself).

"What is it?" He looked a little nervous, like he might be afraid that I would break up with him. As if.

"What would you say... to just staying with me always? You could move in soon. I mean... you spend the night often enough, and I know Mokuba wouldn't mind you staying. I mean, I understand if you don't want to leave Yugi, but-" He silenced me with a soft but insistent kiss.

"You're rambling, you know." I felt myself flush. Seto Kaiba doesn't ramble.

"It was merely me vocalizing my stream of consciousness." He rolled his eyes.

"Call it what you will." I will, thank you very much.

"So... what do you say?" He fixed me with a piercing look.

"Seriously? You really have to ask me? Of course I will. Hell, you couldn't keep me away from you if you tried." I had to smile. I had sort of guessed that this would be his reaction, but you know what happens when we assume... Yeah.

"Good." I kissed him again, more deeply and intensely than before. We broke apart just as the sun slipped beneath the horizon, and for some reason, it felt like like in that moment, everything just sort of fell into place; like everything was right in the world. Which is total bullshit, there are wars and all sorts of horrible things going on all over the place. But for me, right then, life was complete. It was about time, too. After 3000 years of separation, Yami and I were finally together.

* * *

_Is it all you've shared with them that makes us paranoid?_  
_ Is it the dream that one day you might be something you're not?_  
_ Is it all you've shared with them that makes us paranoid?_  
_ Is it the dreams that make us real?_  
_ Is it the dreams that make us real?_

* * *

A/N: So? How did you like it?! I had such a hard time getting this to sound halfway decent.

So the song Junesong Provision is a good song, and you should probably go listen to it. Although it doesn't really make sense if you don't know the backstory, because it even mentions Newo Ikken and Apollo. Oh well.

Gah! Someone leaked the new Coheed and Cambria CD online!!!! and I've been listening to it all day! Yeah, I feel kind of guilty, but hey. I'm going to buy the CD when it comes out, as well as the novel that's being released with it, and I already bought the single (twice, somehow).

But yeah, it's kind of odd that this is done. I wasn't planning on ending it yet, but... well, there wasn't really anywhere else for me to go with it, and I had the whole going back to the aquarium idea while I was playing my Endless Ocean Wii game. yeah, I'm cool. (Bicolor parrotfish are my favorite.)

The "we know what happens when we assume" is supposed to be "it makes an **ass** out of **u** and **me**." One of our teachers said "you know what happens when we assume," and Krista, being evil, said "No, I don't, Mr. Brown. Why don't you tell us?" And then he couldn't, because he's a teacher. So he stuck his tongue out at us (b/c I was sitting next to her giggling like a moron), made a comment about how all redheads are evil, and smacked his dowel on the desk between us. :)

Let me know what you think! Thank you all for reviewing and reading this all the way through! I love you forever!

*many thanks to soundofmadness223*

~alex~


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